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condescend

con·des·cend

UK/ˌkɒndɪˈsɛnd/ US/ˌkɑndəˈsɛnd/ rare obsolete rare

verb

2.

do something that one considers to be below one''s dignity

Synonyms
3.

debase oneself morally, act in an undignified, unworthy, or dishonorable way

  • “I won”
  • “s mail”

Origin

From Middle English condescenden, condescendre (“to deign, condescend; to accede graciously; to agree; to agree to, give consent; to make a concession, yield; etc.”), from Old French condescendre (“to descend, go down; to agree or assent to”) (modern French condescendre), from Ecclesiastical Latin condēscendere, the present active infinitive of condēscendō (“to stoop down; to condescend”), from Latin con- (prefix denoting a bringing together of several objects) + dēscendō (“to come or go down, descend; to stoop down”) (from dē- (prefix denoting reversal or undoing) + scandō (“to ascend, mount; to clamber”) (from Proto-Indo-European *skend- (“to climb, scale; to dart; to jump; etc.”))).

Phrases

  • condescend upon

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.