deprecate
dep·re·cate/ˈdɛp.rɪˌkeɪt/verb
deprecate is spelled D-E-P-R-E-C-A-T-E: 9 letters and 3 syllables (dep·re·cate). It appears about once in every 13 million words in written English, the 109,062nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, deprecate means “To express disapproval of, protest or plead against” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in deprecate?
| Letters | 9: D-E-P-R-E-C-A-T-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: dep·re·cate |
| In writing | about once in every 13 million words; the 109,062nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is deprecate?
Deprecate appears about once in every 13 million words in written English, the 109,062nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce deprecate?
- UK /ˈdɛpɹɪkeɪt/
- UK /ˈdɛpɹəkeɪt/
- US /ˈdɛp.rɪˌkeɪt/
Deprecate has 3 syllables, split dep·re·cate in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Naomi_Persephone_Amethyst_(NaomiAmethyst)-deprecate.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-deprecate.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of deprecate
- deprecates present, singular, he/she/it
- deprecating participle, present
- deprecated participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does deprecate mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To express disapproval of, protest or plead against.
They deprecated the attempt to deny aid to homeless people.
- 2
To belittle, depreciate.
He deprecates any praise of his own merits.
- 3
To declare something obsolescent; to recommend against a function, technique, command, etc. that still works but has been replaced.
The 'bold' tag has been deprecated in favour of the 'strong' tag.
- 4
archaicTo pray against.
- 5
archaicTo regret deeply.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Deprecate in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | désapprouver de |
| German | ablehnen, missbilligen, nicht gutheißen , als überholt einstufen, als veraltet einstufen , beten dagegen |
| Portuguese | depreciar , descontinuar |
| Spanish | deprecar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does deprecate come from?
Borrowed from Latin dēprecātus, perfect active participle of dēprecor (“to pray against (a present or impending evil) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), pray for, intercede for (that which is in danger), rarely imprecate”), from dē- (“off”) + precor (“to pray”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).