Pick the serious, formal, critical, semi-common word "abase" when you want to talk about people choosing to humiliate themselves, often for selfish purposes, like gaining power, money, or the approval of others.

As I think of examples, I keep cringing! Okay, here we go: people might abase themselves by
- publicly begging for their ex to come back,
- politely serving a customer who's being verbally abusive to them,
or
- slathering praise on a powerful politician that they had previously criticized.

That's the most typical way to use this word: to talk about people abasing themselves rather than other people, or things. Less commonly, though, we do talk about people and their actions abasing, say, the positions they hold, or the organizations they belong to: "It's sad when a Supreme Court justice abases the court by accepting, and hiding, extravagant gifts from partisan donors."

"Politicians who have abased themselves before the financial elite are now denouncing corrupt bankers and each other for failing to bring them to heel." 
 — Seumas Milne, The Guardian, 3 July 2012

"The Duc de Tresmes, calling on [Marie Jeanne Gomard de Vaubernier], sent in a note: 'The monkey of Madame la Comtesse begs an audience.' The Dauphin—afterward Louis XVI.—and Marie Antoinette, the Dauphiness, were forced to abase themselves before this vulgarian woman whom they loathed. She reigned supreme."
   — Albert Payson Terhune, Superwomen, 1916

has this page helped you understand "abase"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this term, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "abase" without saying "demean" or "belittle."

try it out:

Fill in the blanks: "(Someone) abases themselves in their desperation to be noticed by (someone else)."

Example 1: "In Mean Girls, Cady abases herself in her desperation to be noticed by her crush Aaron, failing math quizzes on purpose just so he'll volunteer to tutor her."

Example 2: "Perhaps the most embarrassing aspect of the so-called 'special relationship' between Britain and the US – besides the fact that it's so clearly unrequited, with Britain using the term while the US doesn't – is the neediness. Time and again, London abases itself in its desperation to be noticed by Washington, and especially by the White House – no matter how appalling the incumbent of that office."
 — Jonathan Freedland, The Guardian, 16 January 2017

If you like, use this space to write. (To save your work, copy and paste it into an email or a document.)

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

Our game for this month is Confounding Contronyms!

In each issue, I'll give you two quotes, each with a blank. The same word goes in both blanks—but it means opposite things. Your job is to come up with that word: that slippery little contronym. To see the hints, highlight the hidden white text. To see the answer, scroll to the bottom.

Try this today:

Quote 1: "The square was paved with stone. It had a few benches _____ed to the ground here and there."
   — Jeanne DuPrau, City of Ember, 2003

Quote 2: "He ____ed from the room, slamming the door behind him."
   — Alexandra Bracken, The Darkest Minds, 2012

Hint 1: This word starts with the letter... B.

Hint 2: This word means both... "to lock down" and "to escape."

review this word:

1. One opposite of ABASE is

A. ENJOY.
B. DIGNIFY.
C. PROLIFERATE.

2. In a review, David Allen said that "the classical music industry has abased itself at [Klaus Mäkelä's] feet," with major orchestras "_____"

A. dismissing him as 'easy listening.'
B. competing to acquire his future services.
C. taking his compositions into consideration.

Answers to the review questions: 1. B 2. B From the game: bolt.

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From my blog: On vocabulary...       36 ways to study words.       Why we forget words, & how to remember them.       How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. On writing...       How to improve any sentence.       How to motivate our kids to write.       How to stop procrastinating and start writing.       How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count. From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.