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Definition of "demonize" []

  • To turn into or as if into a demon. (verb-transitive)
  • To possess by or as if by a demon. (verb-transitive)
  • To represent as evil or diabolic: wartime propaganda that demonizes the enemy. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "demonize" in a sentence
  • "Davis discounted the effectiveness of Democrats trying to "demonize" their opponents by using the "choice" argument in a broad spectrum of races."
  • "RNC chair Michael Steele took to the airwaves on Tuesday to demand that the Obama administration not "demonize" and "demagogue" the financial sector, lest it ice a major engine of job creation in this country."
  • "And, as no doubt Jamie Dimon (the articulate and very well connected head of JP Morgan Chase) already told Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner over the weekend, if we "demonize" our big banks in this fashion, it will undermine our economic recovery and could weaken financial stability around the world."