Undermines

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To compromise the stability or strength of something To gradually reduce the influence or effectiveness of an individual or institution To weaken the fundamental integrity of a relationship or system
2. To weaken or destabilize the base or foundation of something ; to reduce the strength or control held by a person or group ; to lessen the certainty or reliability of a connection or belief
3. To cause structural support to fail or decay ; to chip away at someone's status or influence ; to gradually sap faith or assurance in a bond or system

Etymology: The verb is a plain compound: "under-" joined to "mine," and the sense of the whole is literal before it is figurative. To mine, in the older sense, meant to dig a tunnel or passage beneath something, most often beneath a fortress wall, so that the wall could be brought down. Undermining was therefore a military act: a sapper dug under the foundations, propped the tunnel with timber, and then set it on fire so the wall collapsed. The "under" element comes down from Old English "under," which has roots in Proto-Germanic, and the "mine" element is the verb that English borrowed from French ("miner," itself tied to the noun "mine" for an excavation). Put together, the compound described digging below a thing to make it fall. The figurative sense, weakening something from beneath rather than attacking it openly, follows naturally from that siege picture. Someone who undermines a friend's confidence or an institution's authority works unseen, eroding support from below until the structure gives way, just as the sappers did to the walls.

Synonyms: subverts, weaken, erode

Antonyms: strengthen, support