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单词 deplete
释义

deplete

verb

de·​plete di-ˈplēt How to pronounce deplete (audio)
depleted; depleting; depletes

transitive verb

1
: to empty of a principal substance
The lake was depleted of water.
depleting the country of its natural resources
2
: to lessen markedly in quantity, content, power, or value
deplete our life savings
their depleted resources
depletable
di-ˈplē-tə-bəl How to pronounce deplete (audio)
adjective
depleter
di-ˈplē-tər How to pronounce deplete (audio)
noun
depletion
di-ˈplē-shən How to pronounce deplete (audio)
noun
depletive
di-ˈplē-tiv How to pronounce deplete (audio)
adjective

Did you know?

The de- prefix often means "do the opposite of", so deplete means the opposite of "fill". Thus, for example, a kitchen's food supplies can be rapidly depleted by hungry teenagers. But deplete often suggests something more serious. Desertions can deplete an army; layoffs can deplete an office staff; and too much time in bed can rapidly deplete your muscular strength.

Synonyms

  • absorb
  • burn
  • consume
  • devour
  • drain
  • draw down
  • exhaust
  • expend
  • play out
  • spend
  • use up
See all Synonyms & Antonyms

Example Sentences

Activities such as logging and mining deplete our natural resources. We completely depleted our life savings when we bought our new house.
Recent Examples on the Web Despite the fact that attrition would pretty quickly deplete those numbers, any, any expense that needs to be sustained at that high level with payrolls and training. Laura Johnston, cleveland, 6 June 2022 Dust storms also damage crops and deplete fertile soil. Kasha Patel, Washington Post, 26 May 2022 Paying unemployment benefits during strikes would deplete the trust fund that’s been tapped during the pandemic and would stunt Connecticut’s slow-growth economy, Republican senators said. Stephen Singer, Hartford Courant, 13 Apr. 2022 Prematurely acquiring premiere talent would deplete the value of that pick, hindering the team's long term ceiling. Rahat Huq, Chron, 5 Sep. 2022 Once in the stratosphere, the researchers said, continued heating can cause changes in ozone through changes in atmospheric circulation, and chemical reactions on the surface of the smoke particles can deplete the ozone layer. Rachel Pannett, Washington Post, 25 Aug. 2022 While fossil fuels are a finite resource that grow scarce and more difficult to extract over time, increasing costs, wind and solar installations, although still dependent on mineral extraction, don’t deplete in the same way. Eamon Barrett, Fortune, 3 Aug. 2022 Published in Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres, their study found yet another route by which rocketry could deplete ozone and exacerbate climate change. Leonard David, Scientific American, 29 July 2022 Decades-high inflation is also feeding recession fears as consumers begin to deplete their pandemic-era savings, roiling markets and generating questions about how long the economic recovery can last. Julia Horowitz, CNN, 30 June 2022 See More

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin dēplētus, past participle of dēplēre "to drain, draw off, empty out," from dē- de- + plērē "to fill" — more at full entry 1

First Known Use

1807, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

deplete

verb

de·​plete di-ˈplēt How to pronounce deplete (audio)
depleted; depleting
: to reduce in amount by using up
The soil was depleted of minerals.

Medical Definition

deplete

transitive verb

de·​plete di-ˈplēt How to pronounce deplete (audio)
depleted; depleting
: to empty (as the blood vessels) of a principal substance
a body depleted by excessive blood loss
tissues depleted of vitamins

deplete

verb

1
as in to drain
to make complete use of miners depleted the vein of copper ore after only a few months

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
  • drain
  • consume
  • spend
  • exhaust
  • reduce
  • absorb
  • expend
  • use
  • burn
  • decrease
  • diminish
  • empty
  • devour
  • eat
  • waste
  • weaken
  • draw down
  • use up
  • dwindle
  • play out
  • undermine
  • lessen
  • impoverish
  • bankrupt
  • run out of
  • cripple
  • downsize
  • debilitate
  • sap
  • squander
  • abate
  • enfeeble
  • lower
  • disable
  • dissipate
  • blow
  • dry up
  • guzzle
  • de-escalate
  • misspend
  • lavish
  • clean (out)
  • throw away
  • run through
  • fritter (away)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

  • increase
  • replace
  • augment
  • renew
  • strengthen
  • bolster
  • reinforce
  • enforce
  • restore
  • enlarge
  • preserve
  • conserve
  • revive
  • save
  • fortify
  • rebuild
  • repair
  • reenforce
See More
2
as in to reduce
to make smaller in amount, volume, or extent disease and battlefield casualties had depleted troop strength to dangerously low levels

Synonyms & Similar Words

  • reduce
  • decrease
  • diminish
  • lower
  • dwindle
  • lessen
  • minimize
  • dent
  • ease
  • abate
  • downsize
  • slash
  • cut
  • drop
  • downscale
  • compress
  • knock down
  • shrink
  • shorten
  • curtail
  • constrict
  • pare
  • de-escalate
  • retrench
  • condense
  • truncate
  • whittle
  • modify
  • trim
  • abridge
  • cut down
  • modulate
  • prune
  • crop
  • cut back
  • deflate
  • abbreviate
  • contract
  • dock
  • nick
  • clip
  • moderate
  • qualify

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

  • increase
  • augment
  • expand
  • boost
  • raise
  • amplify
  • enlarge
  • prolong
  • escalate
  • extend
  • inflate
  • lengthen
  • swell
  • enhance
  • supplement
  • dilate
  • complement
  • aggrandize
  • elongate
  • intensify
  • blow up
  • add (to)
  • heighten
  • distend
  • protract
  • redouble
See More

Synonym Chooser

Some common synonyms of deplete are bankrupt, drain, exhaust, and impoverish. While all these words mean "to deprive of something essential to existence or potency," deplete implies a reduction in number or quantity so as to endanger the ability to function.

depleting our natural resources

Although the words bankrupt and deplete have much in common, bankrupt suggests impoverishment to the point of imminent collapse.

war had bankrupted the nation of resources

The synonyms drain and deplete are sometimes interchangeable, but drain implies a gradual withdrawal and ultimate deprivation of what is necessary to an existence.

personal tragedy had drained him of all spirit

In some situations, the words exhaust and deplete are roughly equivalent. However, exhaust stresses a complete emptying.

her lecture exhausted the subject

While in some cases nearly identical to deplete, impoverish suggests a deprivation of something essential to richness or productiveness.

impoverished soil
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更新时间:2024/12/23 22:21:15