Humiliate

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /hjuːˈmɪliˌeɪt/

Definitions

1. To cause someone to feel ashamed or lose dignity, especially by treating them disrespectfully in front of others
2. To degrade someone by making them feel embarrassed or belittled, often through public ridicule or scornful behavior towards them
3. To lower someone's self-respect or honor, typically by exposing them to contempt or making them feel inadequate in a demeaning manner

Etymology: Humiliate comes from the Latin "humilis," meaning "lowly" or "humble," which itself grew from "humus," the ground or soil. To be humble, in the original sense, was to be close to the earth. That is the literal picture behind the word: someone pushed down into the dirt. The verb took shape in Late Latin as "humiliare," meaning to abase or bring low, and English borrowed it from that later form. The "-ate" ending, the same suffix found in words like "activate" or "validate," turns the adjective-like root into an action: to make someone humble, or in English, to make them feel small. Across that journey the sense moved from physical lowering to a social and emotional one. In English the word now means to shame someone, often publicly, leaving them feeling diminished before others.

Synonyms: shame, mortify, demean, disgrace, humble

Antonyms: honor, praise, support, respect, uplift