belittle
71American English — 1. general. Fowler in Modern English Usage (1926) did not include an entry on American English and said little on the subject, although he cast occasional aspersions on so called ‘undesirable aliens’ (such as belittle). Since then attitudes to… …
72disparage — [di spar′ij] vt. disparaged, disparaging [ME disparagen < OFr desparagier, to marry one of inferior rank < des (see DIS ) + parage, rank < per, PEER1] 1. to lower in esteem; discredit 2. to speak slightingly of; show disrespect for;… …
73pick at — verb 1. pluck or pull at with the fingers (Freq. 1) She picked nervously at the buttons of her blouse • Syn: ↑pluck at, ↑pull at • Hypernyms: ↑pull • Verb Frames …
74talk down — verb 1. belittle through talk (Freq. 1) • Hypernyms: ↑minimize, ↑belittle, ↑denigrate, ↑derogate • Verb Frames: Somebody s something Somebody s somebody …
75vilipend — verb belittle The teacher should not deprecate his student s efforts • Syn: ↑deprecate, ↑depreciate • Derivationally related forms: ↑depreciative (for: ↑depreciate), ↑ …
76cry someone/something down — (dated) DISPARAGE, run down, belittle, make light of, denigrate, decry, deprecate, depreciate, play down, trivialize, minimize; archaic hold cheap. → cry * * * dated disparage or belittle someone or something …
77dep|re|cate — «DEHP ruh kayt», transitive verb, cat|ed, cat|ing. 1. to express strong disapproval of; plead against; protest against: »Lovers of peace deprecate war. 2. to belittle; disparage: »It must take an unusual amount of moxie to deprecate Richard… …
78make little of — {v. phr.} To make (something) seem unimportant; belittle. * /Mary made little of Jane s new bicycle because she was jealous./ * /Tom made little of his saving the drowning boy./ Contrast: MAKE MUCH OF …
79make little of — {v. phr.} To make (something) seem unimportant; belittle. * /Mary made little of Jane s new bicycle because she was jealous./ * /Tom made little of his saving the drowning boy./ Contrast: MAKE MUCH OF …
80Be- — [AS. be, and in accented form b[=i], akin to OS. be and b[=i], OHG. bi, pi, and p[=i], MHG. be and b[=i], G. be and bei, Goth. bi, and perh. Gr. amfi about (cf. AS. bese[ o]n to look about). [root]203. Cf. {By}, {Amb }.] A prefix, originally the… …
