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# degrade

verb (degrade, degrades, degraded, degrading)

«degrade» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. To make something worse in quality or condition: pollution degrades the soil. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#m1)
2. (science) To break down slowly into smaller, simpler parts: plastic takes hundreds of years to degrade. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#m2)
3. To treat someone without respect, making them feel worthless: it degrades people to be shouted at. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#m3)
4. Something degrading is shameful and makes a person feel less worthy or respected. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#m4)

### In the lessons

In science lessons materials degrade over time; biodegradable materials can be broken down by living things like bacteria. In geography, land and habitats are degraded by pollution. In kindness lessons, degrading words and treatment are wrong. Phrases: biodegradable, degrade over time, degrading treatment, environmental degradation.

### Examples

- Plastic bags take a very long time to degrade. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#x1)
- Banana peel degrades quickly in a compost heap. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#x2)
- Pollution has degraded the river. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#x3)
- (formal) Habitat degradation threatens many animals. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#x4)
- It is degrading to laugh at someone who is hurt. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#x5)
- Old photos degrade and fade in sunlight. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#x6)
- “I am the son of the prime minister of a great nation, and yet see what a degrading occupation I am reduced to.” [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/#x7)

### Note

Regular verb: degraded, degrading. Noun: degradation. "Biodegradable" means something living things can break down. "Degrading" as an adjective means insulting or humiliating.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «degrade» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/degrade/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«degrade» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/degrade.html) on Mova free.