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to belittle

to belittle

45 5.0
To make someone or something seem not important
  • verb
  • /bɪˈlɪtəl/
translation icon : menospreciar
  • That said, I don't want to belittle this sort of research.
  • belittle the efforts
  • belittle the importance
  • belittle or ignore

They want to just belittle gay people and trans people.

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Examples

  • No global firm would publicly deny or belittle the importance of an effective and efficient compliance office.

    Academic text (2018)
  • Don't belittle me, Frank!

  • Do not belittle the other partner by giving them less.

  • Also, those who belittle another lack sense.

  • Why do you belittle yourself?

  • Someone thinks they can control you and belittle you and treat you like garbage.

  • Every time you insult and belittle Francis, you hurt me.

  • I don't see why you have to belittle me in front of people like that.

  • It hurts me to see you belittle yourself.

  • You should never belittle someone for their mistakes; everyone makes them.

Synonyms

to diminish
vsto belittle
89 4.7

Make a person or thing seem less important

does the same but may emphasise criticism rather than subtle lowering
to dismiss as
vsto belittle
59 4.6

To say someone or something is not worth taking seriously without careful thought

reduces importance but not only by dismissing without consideration
to put down
vsto belittle
  • Offensive
55 4.9

To make someone feel unimportant by saying bad things about them

targets making someone seem unimportant but not always by unfair verbal attack
to minimize
vsto belittle
54 4.8

Make something seem less serious or important

focuses on lowering respect or worth, not only downplaying importance
to demean
vsto belittle
53 6.8

To make someone feel less respected or important

reduces perceived importance but not only focused on dignity or honor
to denigrate
vsto belittle
48 7.8

To say bad things about someone without a good reason to make them seem less important

does the same but without unfairness or focusing on reputation
to vilify
vsto belittle
43 7.9

To say or write bad things about someone to harm them

reduces worth but not necessarily by abusive public attacks
to disparage
vsto belittle
28 7.7

To speak badly about someone or something to show little respect

aims to reduce respect or worth but not always limited to speech
to deride
vsto belittle
26 7.8

To make fun of someone in a cruel way

reduces importance but may not include scornful mockery
to devalue
vsto belittle
22 5.0

To make something seem less important or respected

is focused on making something seem unimportant rather than changing its actual value
to talk down
vsto belittle
  • Offensive
14 6.7

To speak to someone as if they are less smart or less important

reduces worth but not necessarily by speaking in a patronizing way
to undervalue
vsto belittle
8 4.8

Think something or someone is less important than they really are

does this by criticism or disparagement rather than only by poor estimation
to pillory
vsto belittle
7 9.3

To criticize someone publicly to make them feel ashamed

is about lowering importance but not always by public exposure to scorn
to pick at
vsto belittle
3 5.7

Keep finding small faults in someone or their ideas

less about repeated petty faulting and more about overall reduction of worth
to do down
vsto belittle
  • Offensive
3 8.6

To say bad things about someone to make them look worse

focuses on making someone seem unimportant but not always by unfair speech
to depreciate
vsto belittle
1 6.5

Make a person or thing seem less important and less valuable

has identical meaning but is a different lexical choice
to derogate
vsto belittle
1 8.4

Say or do things that make someone seem less respected

is similar but focuses on lowering respect rather than broad unimportance
to vilipend
vsto belittle
  • Archaic
9.9

To treat someone or something as unimportant and not worth much

has identical meaning but uses a different word form
to cut others down
vsto belittle
  • Offensive
7.0

To say things that make other people feel small

aims to reduce importance but not always intentionally hurtful
to put a slight upon
vsto belittle
  • Offensive
9.1

To show disrespect to someone by making them feel unimportant

focuses on making someone seem unimportant rather than merely insulting them
to make shit of
vsto belittle
  • Offensive
9.9

Say someone's work or ideas are not important and make them feel small

is the standard negative action without crude or vulgar tone
to pillorize
vsto belittle
  • US
9.9

To say bad things about someone in public to make them feel ashamed

is broader, not necessarily public or extremely harsh

Antonyms

285 1.9

To think a person or thing is important

161 1.0

Words or actions that show admiration for someone

How Demeaning

to denigrate
48 7.8
to disparage
28 7.7
to belittle
45 5.0
to dismiss
332 3.0
to downplay
59 5.3

Surface Forms

belittle infinitive
belittled past
belittled past participle
belittling present participle
belittles third person singular

Morphology

belittle = little (transparent) = be + little

The verb is formed by the productive English prefix 'be-' meaning 'make' or 'cause to be' plus the adjective 'little', yielding 'make small' in meaning.

Etymology

Belittle comes from adding be- meaning 'make' to little, so it literally means 'make small' or 'make unimportant', and that's why to belittle someone is to treat their ideas or achievements as unimportant.