Unpopularize

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To cause something to lose its general appeal or favor among people, making it less widely liked or admired
2. Making a thing, idea or person less broadly known, approved of or fashionable within a community
3. To reduce the popularity of something so that fewer people embrace or support it than before

Etymology: "Unpopularize" is a straightforward formation from English parts, not a loanword with a long history. It combines "unpopular," which itself comes from "popular" with the negating prefix "un-," and the verb-forming suffix "-ize." The result means to make something less popular, or to strip a thing of its general appeal. The word could also have been built the other way round, by attaching "un-" to "popularize," which in turn is "popular" plus "-ize." Either route leads to the same meaning, so the word is best understood as a recent English compound rather than something inherited from an older language.

Synonyms: discredit, disfavor, alienate

Antonyms: popularize, promote