Demean

5 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Demean \De*mean"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Demeaned}; p. pr. & vb.
     n. {Demeaning}.] [OF. demener to conduct, guide, manage, F.
     se d['e]mener to struggle; pref. d['e]- (L. de) + mener to
     lead, drive, carry on, conduct, fr. L. minare to drive
     animals by threatening cries, fr. minari to threaten. See
     {Menace}.]


     1. To manage; to conduct; to treat.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              [Our] clergy have with violence demeaned the matter.
                                                    --Milton.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. To conduct; to behave; to comport; -- followed by the
        reflexive pronoun.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              They have demeaned themselves
              Like men born to renown by life or death. --Shak.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              They answered . . . that they should demean
              themselves according to their instructions.
                                                    --Clarendon.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. To debase; to lower; to degrade; -- followed by the
        reflexive pronoun.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Her son would demean himself by a marriage with an
              artist's daughter.                    --Thackeray.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     Note: This sense is probably due to a false etymology which
           regarded the word as connected with the adjective mean.
           [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Demean \De*mean"\, n. [OF. demene. See {Demean}, v. t.]
     1. Management; treatment. [Obs.]
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Vile demean and usage bad.            --Spenser.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. Behavior; conduct; bearing; demeanor. [Obs.]
        [1913 Webster]
  
              With grave demean and solemn vanity.  --West.
        [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Demean \De*mean"\, n. [See {Demesne}.]
     1. Demesne. [Obs.]
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. pl. Resources; means. [Obs.]
        [1913 Webster]
  
              You know
              How narrow our demeans are.           --Massinger.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  demean
       v : reduce in worth or character, usually verbally; "She tends
           to put down younger women colleagues"; "His critics took
           him down after the lecture" [syn: {take down}, {degrade},
            {disgrace}, {put down}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  36 Moby Thesaurus words for "demean":
     abase, abash, acquit, act, bear, belittle, bring down, bring low,
     carry, cast down, comport, conduct, contemn, crush, debase, decry,
     degrade, deport, derogate, despise, detract, diminish, disparage,
     dump, dump on, go on, humiliate, lower, put down, quit, reduce,
     scorn, set down, sink, take down, trip up