Meaning & use

destabilize

verb·Advanced

To make a system, government, or situation less stable or secure.

See it in a sentence

The coup attempt threatened to destabilize the entire region for years.

Rising unemployment can destabilize even a strong and well-managed national economy.

A note on using this word

Common in political and economic writing to describe threats to order or balance.

Words with a similar meaning

undermineunsettle

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Words with an opposite meaning

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