downgrade

IPA/ˌdaʊnˈɡreɪd/
KK[dˈaʊnɡrˈed]IPA/ˌdaʊnˈɡreɪd/

downgrade — verb

  • downgradepresent simple I / you / we / they
  • downgradeshe / she / it
  • downgradedpast simple
  • downgrading-ing form

1. to officially move a person, product, service, or financial rating to a less imp

1.verbtransitiveB2
Definition

to officially move a person, product, service, or financial rating to a less important rank, position, or level, or to judge something as being worth less than before.

Example

After a series of guest complaints, the hotel chain was downgraded from four stars to three.

passive: be downgraded from [X] to [Y]

The airline downgraded Wei's seat to economy and refunded the price difference.

active: downgrade + noun phrase + to [lower tier]

Common collocations
  • be downgraded from
  • be downgraded to
  • downgrade a rating
  • downgrade a position
  • downgrade a bond
  • downgrade a stock
Synonyms
  • demote

    used specifically for people's jobs or ranks; stronger and more personal than 'downgrade'

  • devalue

    focuses on monetary or worth reduction rather than rank or position

  • lower

    a more general word; less formal and less official than 'downgrade'

Antonyms
  • upgrade

    the direct opposite — to raise to a higher rank, level, or standard

  • promote

    used only for people; raising someone to a higher job position

Grammar Patterns

downgrade + noun phrase + from + noun phrase + to + noun phrase

be downgraded + from + noun phrase + to + noun phrase

Usage Note

Frequently used in the passive construction when the agent (the person or body making the change) is not the focus of the sentence. Common in financial contexts with ratings (credit, bond, stock) and travel contexts (hotel star rating, airline seat class).

Common Mistakes

The company downgraded his salary.
The company reduced his salary.
'downgrade' refers to rank/position/rating, not to the amount of money paid.

downgrade — noun

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

All four words describe moving something to a lower state, but they differ in what they are used for. 'Demote' applies only to people in jobs: a manager can demote an employee to a lower position. 'Degrade' is stronger and more emotional, suggesting humiliation or loss of dignity rather than an official ranking change. 'Devalue' focuses on monetary or perceived worth — currencies can be devalued, and people can feel devalued — but it does not imply a change in rank or class. 'Reduce' is the broadest term, covering size, amount, price, and degree; it does not carry the official or structural meaning of 'downgrade'. For example, an analyst would downgrade a stock rating (change the official grade) but might say the company's profit forecast was reduced (lowered in amount) rather than downgraded.

demote ↗degrade ↗devalue ↗reduce ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • sharply downgraded
  • abruptly downgraded
  • significantly downgraded
  • officially downgraded

Phrases

  • be downgraded from something to something
  • on a downgrade
  • at the bottom of the downgrade

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishLatinEnglish

Formed by combining the adverb 'down' (from Old English dūne, meaning 'downward') with 'grade' (from Latin gradus, meaning 'a step or rank'). The word first appeared in the mid-1800s, originally referring to a downward slope on a road. By the early 1900s it had extended to the figurative meaning of lowering someone's rank or position.