de ‧ mor ‧ al ‧ ize BrE AmE ( also demoralise British English ) /dɪˈmɒrəlaɪz $ dɪˈmɔː-, dɪˈmɑː-/ verb [transitive]
to reduce or destroy someone’s courage or confidence:
The illness demoralized him and recovery took several weeks.
—demoralized adjective :
The refugees were cold, hungry, and demoralized.
—demoralizing adjective :
the demoralizing effects of unemployment
—demoralization /dɪˌmɒrəlaɪˈzeɪʃ ə n $ -ˌmɔːrələ-, -ˌmɑː-/ noun [uncountable]