Meaning & use
demote
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To move someone to a lower rank or job level, often as a punishment or after poor performance.
Grammar: Takes an object and often to: demote an officer to private.
Patterns
- demote someone to something
- be demoted from something
- demote someone for something
The company demoted him to assistant after the audit.
She was demoted from captain to lieutenant for ignoring orders.
The mayor threatened to demote any officer who broke the rules.
verbtransitivesport
To move a sports team down to a lower league or division.
Grammar: Often passive in sports reports: the club was demoted.
Patterns
- be demoted to something
- demote a team
The club was demoted after finishing last in the league.
Two teams are demoted at the end of every season.
The league voted to demote the club for breaking financial rules.
verbtransitivefigurative
To give something a lower place in importance or priority.
Grammar: Used for things or ideas rather than people: demote a story on the page.
Patterns
- demote something to something
Editors demoted the story to the back pages.
Safety was demoted to a minor concern.
Word forms
| third person singular | demotes |
|---|---|
| past tense | demoted |
| past participle | demoted |
| -ing form | demoting |
Common combinations
- demote to a lower rank
- The captain was demoted to a lower rank.
- be demoted
- He was demoted after the mistake.
- demote a manager
- The firm decided to demote the manager.
- threaten to demote
- The boss threatened to demote anyone who arrived late.
- demoted from
- She was demoted from supervisor to clerk.
Synonyms and how they differ
- downgrade
- Downgrade is wider and can be used for hotels, products and jobs, and is less tied to rank.
- reduce in rank
- This phrase is a formal way to say demote in military and official use.
- relegate
- Relegate is used for sports teams and for moving something to a less important place.
- bust
- Bust is slang for demote, mostly used in the military and police.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: demote or demolish?
demote vs demolish
Demolish means to tear down a building. It shares the letters dem- but is unrelated in meaning.
Practice
After the scandal, the director was ___ to an assistant role.
Choose one answer.
Demoted means moved to a lower rank, which fits a scandal. Promoted is the opposite, while elected and celebrated do not describe rank changes.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “demote”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.