as in slighting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value
there's no need for belittling comments about your brother's trumpet playing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in dismissing
to express scornfully one's low opinion of
belittled the action star's acting ability
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of belittling
Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 14 Jan. 2023
The boundaries revolve around disrespectful or belittling speech.
—Abigail Van Buren, oregonlive, 28 Sep. 2020
Brian Moylan, Vulture, 7 Aug. 2025
In a way, the elimination of the penny is the perfect sort of move for our new, belittling leader.
—airmail.news, 15 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for belittling
Adjective
Yet, since sometime before July 23, 2022, an anonymous user has been steadily updating IMDb’s trivia section on Corsage with hostile and belittling comments presented under the guise of background information.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 14 Jan. 2023
The boundaries revolve around disrespectful or belittling speech.
—Abigail Van Buren, oregonlive, 28 Sep. 2020
Verb
Stephanie blames everything that happened subsequently on Alexia belittling her, but Alexia only belittled her because Stephanie had made fun of her.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 7 Aug. 2025
In a way, the elimination of the penny is the perfect sort of move for our new, belittling leader.
—airmail.news, 15 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for belittling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for belittling
Verb
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Put frankly, dismissing intention has boxed the ivory tower into a corner for its ability to handle difficult conversations relating to religion.—
Matthew Mayhew,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
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The singer defended Siwa and recounted her own experiences as a bisexual woman falling in love with a man after previously dismissing the idea.—
Anthony Robledo,
USA Today,
6 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Mimicking the president's style on social media, the governor has posted in all caps and employed insulting nicknames for political opponents.—
Jordan King,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Aug. 2025
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Those found guilty of criticizing, insulting, defaming or threatening the king, queen, or heir apparent can be jailed for between three and 15 years for each count, with some sentences stretching to 50 years.—
Helen Regan,
CNN Money,
21 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The schedule will continue to get tougher from here, so minimizing those first quarter mistakes will be essential.—
Maddie Hartley,
Kansas City Star,
7 Sep. 2025
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Its guidelines include optimizing thermostat settings, minimizing electricity and hot water use, and leveraging natural light.—
Christopher Elliott,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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For decades, Indigenous leaders and advocates across the state and country have been trying to convince school communities that the use of such mascots and logos are inappropriate, demeaning and harmful.—
Frank Vaisvilas,
jsonline.com,
29 Aug. 2025
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One detainee who submitted an account to the court that was referenced by Gregorio described sleeping in foul-smelling facilities and facing demeaning treatment by ICE agents.—
Molly Crane-Newman,
New York Daily News,
12 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The difference is the wisdom to recognize that giving away public-trust land and diminishing our quality of life forsakes the permanent greater good for the temporary benefit of a few developers and residents.—
U T Readers,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 Sep. 2025
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In an era of diminishing trust in government institutions and the media, conspiracy theories about high-profile crimes can get significant traction in the absence of a conclusive motive.—
Ernesto Londoño,
Twin Cities,
1 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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And there would be lots of soldiers around, either Army or National Guard, and the people who were civilians would be young people, very disparaging about the military.—
Steve Baltin,
Forbes.com,
24 Aug. 2025
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The 2023 Economic Report Of The President published in March of 2023 was relatively disparaging of cryptoassets and DLTs.—
Lawrence Wintermeyer,
Forbes,
5 Dec. 2024
Verb
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New York City Mayor Eric Adams has peppered his reelection campaign with AI photos and videos criticizing his opponents, in some of the first indications of how the technology will be integrated into politics.—
Rachyl Jones,
semafor.com,
5 Sep. 2025
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It's believed that Sczczerek chose to share the statement from his business' social media account after the company was flooded with negative reviews criticizing his behavior.—
Chloe Mayer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Some users bragged about allegedly assaulting or blackmailing women and encouraged others to insult the women shown in photos with degrading language.—
CNN Staff 20 hr ago,
CNN Money,
24 Aug. 2025
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In a degrading battery, the researchers observed two key signs of trouble.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
5 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Belittling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/belittling. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.
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