Word
abased
Definitions
01humbled or lowered in status
adj. feeling ashamed or having lost your high position or respect.
adj. reduced in rank, prestige, or self-esteem; describing a state of profound humiliation.
“He felt abased after his mistakes were pointed out in front of the whole office.”
“The once-powerful minister stood abased before the tribunal, his former influence stripped away by the evidence of his corruption.”
Formal · Literary
Synonyms
02past action of humbling
v. the past tense of 'abase', meaning to have made someone feel lower or less important.
v. the past tense and past participle of the transitive verb 'abase', meaning to lower in rank or prestige.
“The king abased himself before the people to show he was sorry.”
“In a surprising display of public penance, the CEO abased himself before the shareholders, admitting full responsibility for the company's financial collapse.”
Formal · Literary
Synonyms
Usage
Typically follows a linking verb like 'feel', 'become', or 'remain'.
Etymology
From abase + -ed.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.