downgrade
downgrade Lexical Profile
downgrade Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A reduction in rank, status, importance, or financial rating.
"The company's stock fell sharply following a credit rating downgrade by major analysts."
North American A downward slope or descending gradient, especially on a road or railway track.
"Truck drivers are required to test their brakes before descending the steep mountain downgrade."
• verb
To reduce to a lower grade, rank, status, or level of importance.
"Meteorologists decided to downgrade the tropical storm to a depression as wind speeds weakened."
To revert a computer system, software application, or service plan to an earlier or less advanced version.
"After experiencing compatibility bugs with the new release, several users chose to downgrade to the previous operating system."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed in the mid-19th century as an American English compound of 'down' and 'grade', originally referring to a downward slope along a railroad track before acquiring its figurative sense of reducing rank or status in the 1930s.