as in slighting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value
he typically followed up any mention of his accomplishments with some deprecatory comments about his perceived failures
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Recent Examples of deprecatory
This subsided with unusual speed, however, as cricket fans took instead to sharing the self-deprecatory jokes coming over the border.
—
The Economist, 22 June 2019
Philipps has acquired her 1-million-and-growing Instagram followers through her self-deprecatory humor, raw honesty and vulnerability.
—Sonja Haller, USA TODAY, 11 July 2018
What the show is really selling is the Chang attitude and mystique, a combination of ego, exactitude, foul-mouthed rebelliousness and self-deprecatory nerdiness.
—Mike Hale, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2018
The Economist, 22 June 2019
Philipps has acquired her 1-million-and-growing Instagram followers through her self-deprecatory humor, raw honesty and vulnerability.
—Sonja Haller, USA TODAY, 11 July 2018
What the show is really selling is the Chang attitude and mystique, a combination of ego, exactitude, foul-mouthed rebelliousness and self-deprecatory nerdiness.
—Mike Hale, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deprecatory
Adjective
-
Sean Griffin, local executive council president for the union, said the pay is insulting.—
Chase Jordan,
Charlotte Observer,
26 Mar. 2025
-
To suggest civil servants don’t work hard and could do more for less is insulting to the hundreds of thousands of hard-working federal workers earning their paychecks today.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Meanwhile, South Australia has seen a 63% decline in critical incidents—such as bullying and distribution of explicit or derogatory content—involving social media and 54% fewer behavioral issues.—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
3 Apr. 2025
-
Gopnik is a derogatory Russian slang word that roughly translates to thug.—
Lissete Lanuza Sáenz,
StyleCaster,
1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
This is not a pejorative question; as Harris’s wife says herself, and as the whole world saw in 2018, sometimes a deep-diving anesthetist can come in handy.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
31 Mar. 2025
-
While Bascombe is there, Adam alerts his dad to the pejorative meaning behind some emojis that Katie was sending to Jamie on Instagram, prompting the detective to start looking into whether Jamie might have been cyber-bullied.—
Olivia B. Waxman,
TIME,
13 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Jose Velasquez-Martinez, 27, is charged with malicious wounding and murder in connection with 29-year-old Brandon Probst's death in Warrenton, according to the Fauquier County Sheriff's Office.—
Audrey Conklin,
FOXNews.com,
4 Apr. 2025
-
There is evidence of motivated malicious actors abusing the 'verified account' to deceive users.—
Jon Brodkin,
ArsTechnica,
4 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Though the pollen gunk will pass, he's concerned by a contingent of Twitter trolls who've shared uncomplimentary reviews of his recent North American tour.—
Jordan Runtagh,
PEOPLE.com,
21 Jan. 2022
-
Neither party admitted to liability and each agreed to refrain from making disparaging, negative or uncomplimentary statements about the other, the document said.—
Lorraine Mirabella,
Baltimore Sun,
29 July 2022
Adjective
-
Meghan Markle's Netflix Backlash Meghan's Netflix show earned scornful reviews not only in the British press, long the villains of Meghan and Prince Harry's narrative, but also among U.S. outlets that previously provided glowing coverage.—
Daniel R. Depetris,
Newsweek,
25 Mar. 2025
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The Nosotros people had returned Borja’s bribe money to him with no comment, only scornful silence, but the sting of the snub had not gone very deep.—
Charles Portis,
Harper's Magazine,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
According to an ancient Greek myth, all those who had fallen in love with the young man Narcissus were met with contemptuous rejection.—
Abigayle Ward,
Hartford Courant,
8 Mar. 2025
-
The president was also profoundly contemptuous of women, kept his true opposition to female suffrage carefully hidden, and allowed the suffragists who silently held banners outside the White House to be repeatedly attacked by mobs, beaten, and jailed.—
Foreign Affairs,
Foreign Affairs,
25 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Both documents suggest that Marocco was disdainful of aid spent on health care, economic development and programs to promote democracy and human rights.—
Fatma Tanis,
NPR,
25 Mar. 2025
-
From above, the figurines almost appear to be grinning, but the face looks disdainful when viewed head-on.—
Mack DeGeurin,
Popular Science,
6 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Deprecatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deprecatory. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
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