DEHUMANIZING Synonyms: 33 Similar and Opposite Words

dehumanizing

verb

Definition of dehumanizing

present participle of dehumanize

as in humiliating

to make (someone) feel or behave more like an animal than a human being being deprived of clothes dehumanized the prisoners

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of dehumanizing Hisbah members also face widespread allegations of rights abuses in their enforcement operations, including subjecting offenders to dehumanizing punishments such as public beatings or shaming. — ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026 The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan five years ago ushered in an era of dehumanizing restrictions for women and girls. — Dominique Soguel, Christian Science Monitor, 15 Aug. 2026 My book was meant to highlight both the personal and societal issues of early literacy deprivation, while tracking the prescient issue of increasing screen time dumbing down and dehumanizing society. — Liza Lentini, SPIN, 21 July 2026 His followers responded with a steady stream of invective, describing Atkin and Jammi in misogynistic and, at times, dehumanizing language. — Literary Hub, 30 June 2026 As Israel and the United States joined forces to attack Iran, and Israel pursued its proxies in Lebanon, rhetoric dehumanizing Jews also spiked. — Jackie Hajdenberg, Sun Sentinel, 29 June 2026 Critics, however, accused lawmakers of dehumanizing migrants and weakening core protections. — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 20 June 2026 Social media posts and comments showed an increasing use of dehumanizing language toward Muslims. — Anisah Bagasra, The Conversation, 19 May 2026 In particular, when politicians use demonizing or dehumanizing rhetoric to attack their opponents— for example, using words that depict their opponents as subhuman— this fosters extremism and helps motivate extremists to hurt their opponents physically. — James Piazza, Twin Cities, 30 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dehumanizing

Verb

The Iranians are now setting the terms of this conflict and are routinely humiliating the American president.

— Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 8 July 2026
Instead of demanding personal fealty or humiliating them to assert personal dominance, Lincoln absorbed their egos and occasional slights, elevating their talents and turning his fiercest political adversaries into his most devoted champions.

— Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 24 June 2026

Definition of humiliating

Verb

In 2022, two corrections officers at the Laurens County Detention Center in South Carolina were arrested and charged with brutalizing an inmate and using a GLOVE device to repeatedly stun them, CNN noted.

— Frank Landymore, Futurism, 12 Aug. 2026
Each competitor was giving it their all with brutalizing chops, tough suplexes and going above and beyond to try to win that championship.

— Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 15 July 2026

Definition of brutalizing

Verb

See affected product Symptoms of salmonella poisoning Symptoms of salmonella poisoning usually start six hours to six days after ingesting the bacteria.

— Julia Gomez, USA Today, 24 Aug. 2026
The burning of fossil fuels is poisoning the air our kids breathe and endangering their present and future by overheating our planet.

— Catarina Rolfsdotter-Jansson, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026

Definition of poisoning

Browse Nearby Words

dehumanizes

dehumanizing

dehumidification

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Dehumanizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dehumanizing. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of dehumanizing

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

conscientious

Popular in Grammar & Usage

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Popular in Wordplay

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Games & Quizzes