Belittle
/bɪˈlɪt.əl/noun
To make someone or something seem unimportant or inferior.
Did you know?Belittle is one of the rare English words whose exact origin is tied to a deliberate coinage: Thomas Jefferson used it in the 1780s to mean making someone seem smaller in status, not size.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
be-
“A prefix meaning 'about, around, by, with,' later used in formations that intensify or alter a verb's sense.”
14th Century
English
little
“Small in size, amount, or degree.”
1781
English
belittle
“To make little of; to represent as small or unimportant.”
19th Century
English
belittle
“To disparage or diminish in importance.”
Modern English
English
belittle
“To make someone or something seem less important or less worthy.”