to undermine the morale of; dishearten: he was demoralized by his defeat to debase morally; corrupt to throw into confusion
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
de•mor•al•ize /dɪˈmɔrəˌlaɪz, -ˈmɑr-/USA pronunciation
v. [ ~ + obj], -ized, -iz•ing.
de•mor•al•ized, adj.: The demoralized army trudged home after the defeat.
de•mor•al•iz•ing, adj.: suffered a demoralizing defeat.See -mor-.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025- to deprive (someone) of spirit, courage, or discipline; destroy the morale of:The terrible defeat demoralized the army.
de•mor•al•ized, adj.: The demoralized army trudged home after the defeat.
de•mor•al•iz•ing, adj.: suffered a demoralizing defeat.See -mor-.
de•mor•al•ize
(di môr′ə līz′, -mor′-),USA pronunciation v.t., -ized, -iz•ing.
de•mor′al•i•za′tion, n.
de•mor′al•iz′er, n.
de•mor′al•iz′ing•ly, adv.
- to deprive (a person or persons) of spirit, courage, discipline, etc.;
destroy the morale of:The continuous barrage demoralized the infantry. - to throw (a person) into disorder or confusion;
bewilder:We were so demoralized by that one wrong turn that we were lost for hours. - to corrupt or undermine the morals of.
- French démoraliser. See de-, moral, -ize
- 1785–95
de•mor′al•iz′er, n.
de•mor′al•iz′ing•ly, adv.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'demoralize' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):