degrade
part of speech
verb (degrade, degrades, degraded, degrading)
meaning for a pupil
1) To make something worse in quality or condition: pollution degrades the soil. tree →
2) (science) To break down slowly into smaller, simpler parts: plastic takes hundreds of years to degrade. tree →
3) To treat someone without respect, making them feel worthless: it degrades people to be shouted at. tree →
4) Something degrading is shameful and makes a person feel less worthy or respected. tree →
sense 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 →
- Banana peel degrades quickly in a compost heap. tree →
- Pollution has degraded the river. tree →
- (formal) Habitat degradation threatens many animals. tree →
- It is degrading to laugh at someone who is hurt. tree →
- Old photos degrade and fade in sunlight. tree →
- “I am the son of the prime minister of a great nation, and yet see what a degrading occupation I am reduced to.” tree →
note
Regular verb: degraded, degrading. Noun: degradation. "Biodegradable" means something living things can break down. "Degrading" as an adjective means insulting or humiliating.
In the corpora
- A vivid example: "We degraded the enemy's capability" can mean "we bombed them and many people died".
- "Degrade" in war talk means damage or destroy, often killing many people.
- About a third of the world's soils are degraded by erosion, salt, pollution or overuse.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «degrade» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.