2 VERB To degrade something means to cause it to get worse. [FORMAL ] □ [V n] …the ability to meet human needs indefinitely without degrading the environment.
3 VERB In science, if a substance degrades or if something degrades it, it changes chemically and decays or separates into different substances. [TECHNICAL ] □ [V ] This substance degrades rapidly in the soil. □ [V n] …the ability of these enzymes to degrade cellulose.
de|gree ◆◆◇ /d I griː / (degrees )
1 N‑COUNT You use degree to indicate the extent to which something happens or is the case, or the amount which something is felt. □ [+ of ] These man-made barriers will ensure a very high degree of protection. □ [+ of ] Politicians have used television with varying degrees of success. ● PHRASE If something has a degree of a particular quality, it has a small but significant amount of that quality. □ Their wages do, however, allow them a degree of independence.
2 N‑COUNT A degree is a unit of measurement that is used to measure temperatures. It is often written as °, for example 23°. □ It's over 80 degrees outside.
3 N‑COUNT A degree is a unit of measurement that is used to measure angles, and also longitude and latitude. It is often written as °, for example 23°. □ It was pointing outward at an angle of 45 degrees.
4 N‑COUNT A degree at a university or college is a course of study that you take there, or the qualification that you get when you have passed the course. □ He took a master's degree in economics at Yale. □ …the first year of a degree course.
5 → see also first-degree , second-degree , third-degree
6 PHRASE If something happens by degrees , it happens slowly and gradually. □ The crowd in Robinson's Coffee-House was thinning, but only by degrees.
7 PHRASE You use expressions such as to some degree , to a large degree , or to a certain degree in order to indicate that something is partly true, but not entirely true. [VAGUENESS ] □ These statements are, to some degree, all correct.
8 PHRASE You use expressions such as to what degree and to the degree that when you are discussing how true a statement is, or in what ways it is true. [VAGUENESS ] □ To what degree would you say you had control over things that went on? COLLOCATIONS degree NOUN
1
adjective + degree : great, high, large; certain, considerable, fair, reasonable; various, varying
5
adjective + degree : postgraduate, undergraduate; honorary; first-class, second-class
verb + degree : gain, obtain, receive SYNONYMS degree NOUN 1
extent: Growing up with him soon made me realise the extent of his determination.
amount: I still do a certain amount of work for them.
leveclass="underline" The exercises are marked according to their level of difficulty.
proportion: A large proportion of the dolphins in that area will eventually die.
de|hu|man|ize /diː hjuː məna I z/ (dehumanizes , dehumanizing , dehumanized ) in BRIT, also use dehumanise VERB If you say that something dehumanizes people, you mean it takes away from them good human qualities such as kindness, generosity, and independence. □ [V n] The years of civil war have dehumanized all of us.
de|hu|midi|fi|er /diːhjuːm I d I fa I ə r / (dehumidifiers ) N‑COUNT A dehumidifier is a machine that is used to reduce the amount of moisture in the air.
de|hy|drate /diː ha I dre I t, -ha I dre I t/ (dehydrates , dehydrating , dehydrated )
1 VERB [usu passive] When something such as food is dehydrated , all the water is removed from it, often in order to preserve it. □ [be V -ed] Normally specimens have to be dehydrated. ● de|hy|drat|ed ADJ □ Dehydrated meals, soups and sauces contain a lot of salt.
2 VERB If you dehydrate or if something dehydrates you, you lose too much water from your body so that you feel weak or ill. □ [V ] People can dehydrate in weather like this. □ [V n] Alcohol quickly dehydrates your body. ● de|hy|dra|tion /diː ha I dre I ʃ ə n/ N‑UNCOUNT □ …a child who's got diarrhoea and is suffering from dehydration.
dei|fi|ca|tion /de I I f I ke I ʃ ə n, [AM ] diː -/ N‑UNCOUNT If you talk about the deification of someone or something, you mean that they are regarded with very great respect and are not criticized at all. [FORMAL ] □ [+ of ] …the deification of science in the 1940s.
dei|fy /de I I fa I , [AM ] diː -/ (deifies , deifying , deified ) VERB [usu passive] If someone is deified , they are considered to be a god or are regarded with very great respect. [FORMAL ] □ [be V -ed] Valentino was virtually deified by legions of female fans.
deign /de I n/ (deigns , deigning , deigned ) VERB If you say that someone deigned to do something, you are expressing your disapproval of the fact that they did it unwillingly, because they thought they were too important to do it. [FORMAL , DISAPPROVAL ] □ [V to-inf] At last, Harper deigned to speak.
de|ism /de I I zəm, [AM ] diː -/ N‑UNCOUNT Deism is the belief that there is a God who made the world but does not influence human lives.