degrade

degrade — 動詞

1. to damage someone's sense of worth and dignity by treating them badly or disresp

1.動詞及物B2
釋義

貶低

使人感到失去價值或尊嚴

to damage someone's sense of worth and dignity by treating them badly or disrespectfully.

例句

Ezra felt degraded when his boss spoke rudely to him in front of everyone.

Ezra 覺得自己很沒尊嚴，因為老闆在大家面前對他講話很粗魯。

common pattern: feel degraded by [someone]

Those cruel jokes about her accent degraded Renata in front of the whole class.

那些嘲笑 Renata 口音的殘酷玩笑，讓她在全班同學面前受辱。

同義詞
  • humiliate

    stronger than degrade; focuses on public embarrassment and loss of pride

  • demean

    more formal than degrade; suggests lowering someone's status or worth

  • belittle

    refers specifically to making someone or their achievements seem unimportant, often through words

反義詞
  • dignify

    to give worth or honour to someone

  • respect

    to treat someone with admiration and consideration

文法句型

degrade + someone / degrade + oneself

be degraded by + someone

feel degraded

用法筆記

Often used in the passive voice ('be degraded') or as a past-participle adjective ('felt degraded'). Can also be reflexive: 'degrade yourself' means to do something that lowers your own dignity.

常見錯誤

❌The movie degraded to a silly comedy.
✅The movie descended to a silly comedy.
💡'degrade' is not used for a change in quality of art; use 'decline' or 'descend' instead.
❌He degraded her by giving her a small gift.
✅He degraded her by shouting at her in public.
💡'degrade' requires a serious loss of dignity, not a mild disappointment.

2. to damage the look, standard, or condition of something so that it becomes notic

2.動詞及物B1
釋義

破壞

損害物品的外觀或品質

to damage the look, standard, or condition of something so that it becomes noticeably less attractive or less good.

例句

The old factory degraded the quality of the river water for miles downstream.

那座老工廠破壞了下游好幾英里處的河水品質。

collocation: degrade + quality of [something]

Years of direct sunlight degraded the red paint on Sari's front door.

長年的陽光直射破壞了 Sari 家前門的紅色油漆。

同義詞
  • spoil

    more general and less formal; can describe any kind of damage or ruin

  • damage

    broader than degrade; can describe harm from a single event

  • tarnish

    usually refers to metal surfaces losing shine, or metaphorically to reputation

反義詞
  • enhance

    to improve the quality, value, or appearance of something

  • preserve

    to keep something in its original good condition

文法句型

degrade + something

degrade + the quality/beauty of + something

用法筆記

Describes gradual damage that worsens appearance or quality over time, rather than sudden or complete destruction. The agent (what causes the damage) is often a natural force or environmental condition.

常見錯誤

❌He degraded his phone by dropping it once.
✅He broke his phone by dropping it once.
💡'degrade' implies gradual worsening, not a single damaging event.

3. to damage the strength, influence, or effectiveness of a group or system by stea

3.動詞及物C1
釋義

削弱

削弱組織或系統的力量

to damage the strength, influence, or effectiveness of a group or system by steadily applying pressure or criticism.

例句

Repeated budget cuts degraded the hospital's ability to care for patients properly.

接連的預算刪減削弱了醫院妥善照顧病人的能力。

collocation: degrade + ability / degrade + effectiveness

The leader's pattern of lies degraded public trust in the government over several years.

那位領導人一再說謊，幾年下來削弱了大眾對政府的信任。

同義詞
  • undermine

    similar to degrade but often suggests a more subtle or hidden process of weakening

  • erode

    metaphorical use; suggests a slow wearing away of trust or authority

  • weaken

    more general and neutral; can apply to many kinds of structures

反義詞
  • strengthen

    to make an organization or system more powerful or effective

  • bolster

    to support or reinforce something that is under threat

文法句型

degrade + an organization/system/institution

degrade + trust/confidence/morale

用法筆記

Subject is typically an external force such as budget cuts, scandals, poor decisions, or repeated criticism. Unlike sense 1, the target here is an institution or system rather than a person's dignity.

常見錯誤

❌The bad weather degraded the school.
✅The funding cuts degraded the school's ability to teach.
💡'degrade' in this sense works best with a specific capability or quality, not the entity itself.
❌His one mistake degraded the whole department.
✅His many mistakes gradually degraded the department's reputation.
💡This sense implies a gradual process, not a single event.

4. to reduce the working ability, signal strength, or output level of an electronic

4.動詞及物 / 不及物C1
釋義

降低效能

降低電子設備或網路的效能

to reduce the working ability, signal strength, or output level of an electronic device, computer network, or system, or to become reduced in this way on its own.

例句

Running too many programs at once can degrade the computer's overall performance.

同時執行太多程式會降低電腦的整體效能。

collocation: degrade + performance

The phone signal degraded as Hyun drove through the mountain tunnel.

Hyun 開車經過隧道時，手機訊號變差了。

同義詞
  • impair

    more formal; suggests damage that reduces function or quality

  • reduce

    more general; does not imply a negative consequence as strongly

  • downgrade

    specifically about reducing to a lower version or standard, common in software

反義詞
  • boost

    to increase the performance or strength of a signal

  • enhance

    to improve the quality or capability of a system

文法句型

degrade + performance/signal/quality

something degrades (intransitive)

用法筆記

Can be used both transitively ('the heat degraded the signal') and intransitively ('the signal degraded'). Common in computing, telecommunications, and electronics contexts. Often describes a gradual reduction rather than sudden failure.

常見錯誤

❌The software degraded to version 2.0.
✅The software was downgraded to version 2.0.
💡For version changes, use 'downgrade', not 'degrade'.

5. when a material breaks down into smaller chemical parts, either on its own or wh

5.動詞及物 / 不及物B2
釋義

分解

物質分解為更簡單的化學結構

when a material breaks down into smaller chemical parts, either on its own or when exposed to conditions such as light, heat, or moisture.

例句

The plastic bottle will degrade naturally in the soil after about fifty years.

那個寶特瓶大約五十年後會在土壤中自然分解。

intransitive: degrade naturally / degrade in [condition]

Sunlight helps degrade the chemicals found in some industrial cleaning products.

陽光有助於分解某些工業清潔劑中的化學物質。

同義詞
  • decompose

    very similar to degrade; more common for organic matter and biological processes

  • break down

    less formal than degrade; interchangeable in most scientific contexts

  • decay

    suggests a natural, gradual process of rotting or falling apart

反義詞
  • synthesize

    to build up a complex chemical compound from simpler parts

  • form

    to create or compose a substance from elements or compounds

文法句型

a substance degrades (intransitive)

something degrades a substance

degrade + into + simpler parts

用法筆記

Common in environmental science, biology, and chemistry. Frequently used in the passive form ('is degraded by enzymes'). The intransitive form describes a natural process without an outside cause.

常見錯誤

❌The food degraded in the fridge.
✅The food decomposed in the fridge.
💡For food going bad, 'decompose' or 'rot' is more natural. 'Degrade' is more technical, used for chemical structure change.

6. to move to a lower path around a planet or star as time passes, usually because

6.動詞不及物C2
釋義

衰減

軌道或高度隨時間逐漸降低

to move to a lower path around a planet or star as time passes, usually because of friction from the atmosphere or the pull of gravity.

例句

The satellite's orbit degraded slowly until the spacecraft burned up in the atmosphere.

那顆衛星的軌道逐漸衰減，最後在大氣層中燒毀。

Without regular engine burns, the station's orbit degrades by roughly two kilometres each month.

如果不定時啟動引擎調整軌道，太空站的軌道每個月會衰減大約兩公里。

subject: orbit + degrades + measure phrase

同義詞
  • decay

    interchangeable in aerospace contexts; 'orbital decay' is the standard term

  • drop

    less formal; describes the result without implying the physical mechanism

  • lower

    simple description of the altitude change, but not a technical synonym

反義詞
  • raise

    to increase orbital altitude, usually by firing thrusters

  • boost

    to increase the orbit's altitude using engine power

文法句型

orbit / altitude + degrades

an orbit degrades over time

用法筆記

Almost exclusively intransitive in this sense. The subject is an orbit, altitude, or trajectory. Used only in aerospace contexts. The related noun form 'orbital degradation' is more common in technical writing.

常見錯誤

❌The rocket degraded its path.
✅The rocket's path degraded as it lost speed.
💡This sense is intransitive; the orbit degrades on its own, not something you do to it.