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Webster 1913 Edition


Dehumanize

De-hu′man-ize

,
Verb.
T.
To divest of human qualities, such as pity, tenderness, etc.;
as,
dehumanizing
influences
.

Definition 2024


dehumanize

dehumanize

See also: de-humanize

English

Verb

dehumanize (third-person singular simple present dehumanizes, present participle dehumanizing, simple past and past participle dehumanized)

  1. To take away humanity, to remove or deny human qualities, characteristics, or attributes.
    • 2003, Stephen P. Garvey, editor, Beyond Repair? America's Death Penalty, ISBN 9780822330431, page 141:
      And, in this country, the traditional, ingrained way to dehumanize people, to make both their pain and their individuality irrelevant, is to rely on their race.
    • 1968, Stewart L. Udall, 1976: Agenda for Tomorrow, page 3:
      Yet we are dismayed by the failures and forces that dehumanize and defeat the finest dreams and plans of this generation.

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Alternative forms