cheapen
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to make cheap or cheaper.
-
to lower in esteem; bring into contempt.
Constant swearing cheapened him.
-
to decrease the quality or beauty of; make inferior or vulgar.
She cheapened the dress by adding a fringe to it.
-
Archaic. to bargain for.
verb (used without object)
verb
-
to make or become lower in reputation, quality, etc; degrade or be degraded
-
to make or become cheap or cheaper
Other Word Forms
- cheapener noun
- uncheapened adjective
Etymology
Origin of cheapen
1555–65; cheap + -en 1; replacing Middle English chepen (> obsolete English cheap (v.)) to price, bargain, Old English cēapian to bargain, trade, buy; cognate with Old Norse kaupa, Gothic kaupōn, German kaufen
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
That didn’t bother the Heat, nor did it cheapen the achievement for Adebayo.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 11, 2026
The Japanese government doesn’t want its currency to cheapen dramatically; that makes it more expensive for Japanese citizens to buy what they need.
From Barron's • Jan. 26, 2026
The question that vexed me as I left La Jolla Playhouse, where “Working Girl” is receiving its world premiere, is why must musicals so often cheapen their source material?
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 19, 2025
But the bad vibes of “Artificial Angels” persist, not just because the name does what it can to cheapen Grimes’ 2015 masterwork “Art Angels,” which sees its tenth anniversary hit this very month.
From Salon • Nov. 7, 2025
I don’t like to throw the L-word around; it’s too good and rare a feeling to cheapen with overuse.
From "Turtles All the Way Down" by John Green
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
