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undermine (언-더-마인 (강세: 마인))to gradually weaken or damage something or someone

Part of speech: VERB

Definition: to gradually weaken or damage something or someone

Pronunciation (IPA): /ˌʌndərˈmaɪn/

Korean meaning: 점진적으로 약화시키다, 손상시키다

Korean pronunciation: 언-더-마인 (강세: 마인)

Example Sentences

  • The student's habit of sleeping in class completely undermined the teacher's 'exciting' math lesson.
  • Eating pizza while on a diet tends to undermine your weight loss goals.
  • The leak of confidential information undermined the company's reputation.

undermine

VERB

//ˌʌndərˈmaɪn//

to gradually weaken or damage something or someone

undermine concept
💡 Concept

Gradually weakening from within

undermine mnemonic english
🧠 Mnemonic

Under-mine the castle — dig below to make it fall!

undermine rhyme
🎵 Rhyme

They undermine his design, causing dreams to decline

🎤Pronunciation

🇺🇸 US/ˌʌndərˈmaɪn/
🇬🇧 UK/ˌʌndəˈmaɪn/

🌳Etymology

Prefixunder--
Rootmine

Origin

From Middle English and Old English, combining the prefix 'under-' (beneath) with the verb 'mine' (to dig). The term originally referred to the literal act of digging beneath something to cause it to collapse, later developing the metaphorical sense of weakening something gradually.

🎵Rhyme

designdeclinedefinealign
design
decline
define
align

🔗Collocations

undermine confidence
undermine authority
undermine efforts
undermine democracy
undermine stability
gradually undermine

📝Examples

😄 Fun example

The student's habit of sleeping in class completely undermined the teacher's 'exciting' math lesson.

😄 Fun example

Eating pizza while on a diet tends to undermine your weight loss goals.

The leak of confidential information undermined the company's reputation.

Constant interruptions during meetings undermine productivity.

📚Related Words

Synonyms

weakensabotagedamageerodesubvert

Antonyms

strengthensupportreinforce

Related

foundationstabilitydeterioratecompromise

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