undermine
verb🔊/ˌʌndəˈmaɪn/
🔊/ˌʌndərˈmaɪn/
Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they undermine | 🔊/ˌʌndəˈmaɪn/ 🔊/ˌʌndərˈmaɪn/ |
| he / she / it undermines | 🔊/ˌʌndəˈmaɪnz/ 🔊/ˌʌndərˈmaɪnz/ |
| past simple undermined | 🔊/ˌʌndəˈmaɪnd/ 🔊/ˌʌndərˈmaɪnd/ |
| past participle undermined | 🔊/ˌʌndəˈmaɪnd/ 🔊/ˌʌndərˈmaɪnd/ |
| -ing form undermining | 🔊/ˌʌndəˈmaɪnɪŋ/ 🔊/ˌʌndərˈmaɪnɪŋ/ |
- undermine something/somebody
to make something, especially somebody’s confidence or authority, gradually weaker or less effective 逐渐削弱（信心、权威等）；使逐步减少效力 Our confidence in the team has been seriously undermined by their recent defeats. 他们最近的几次失利已严重动摇了我们对该队的信心。 🔊🔊 This crisis has undermined his position. 这场危机已损害了他的地位。 🔊🔊 Recent changes have undermined teachers’ morale. 最近的变化削弱了教师的士气。 The director saw this move as an attempt to undermine his authority. 经理认为此举是想削弱他的权威。 It's all a plot to undermine me. 这都是破坏我的阴谋。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- greatly
- radically
- seriously
- …
- threaten to
- attempt to
- seek to
- …
- undermine something
to make something weaker at the base, for example by digging under it 从根基处破坏；挖…的墙脚
Word OriginMiddle English: from under- + the verb mine, probably suggested by Middle Dutch ondermineren.