How To Use Undermine In A Sentence

Calling Potter a writer undermines a great deal of the depth and dynamics he brought to the lexicon of language.
However, the destruction of so many kamikaze flights did a great deal to undermine the potential for damage that the kamikazes could have inflicted.
Committed by parents, teachers, priests or minders it undermines trust and dependency, disrupts relations with authority figures and can interfere with loving and learning.
Instead they have further undermined the economy by driving capital and foreign investors out of the country. Times, Sunday Times
Evidence such as this serves to undermine the apparently monolithic edifice of Victorianism.

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Anything less than a convincing victory by Graham Taylor's team will undermine their chances of qualifying from Group 2.
The work of regulatory agencies was also undermined by budget cuts and a concerted unwillingness to enforce existing regulations.
Christie knows that the continuity in playing personnel is a major strength and it's not one he plans to undermine with a cut-price garage sale.
Memories are to be prized but not relied upon for they are always undermined by the imagination.
Second, if a Palestinian state is recognized along the 1967 lines in point of fact, nothing more than the 1949 armistice lines, this undermines UN Security Council Resolution 242 and 338 and the Camp David Accords, which call for a negotiated outcome and do not predetermine final boundaries. David Harris: Support Peace: Oppose Palestinian UN Gambit
Beware of a crafty person who undermines your achievement at work.
Lowe wrote claiming that Sutton was trying to undermine him and forge an alliance with the Founders.
To say the word god in American public discourse is to conjure up a number of images and ideas that serve to undermine democracy in name of religious freedom. Rev. Osagyefo Uhuru Sekou: 'Gods, Gays and Guns' (EXCERPT)
Offering advice on each and every problem will undermine her feeling of being adult.
In Athens they scarcely appear above the horizon, so the early Greek texts undermined their importance.
Unbeknown to you the real motive is to question you in order to undermine your position.
Her unwillingness to answer questions undermined the strength of her position.
It would emasculate the trial process, and undermine public confidence in the administration of criminal justice, if a standard of perfection were imposed that was incapable of attainment in practice.
This would seem to undermine the whole idea of nuclear non-proliferation.
Exclusion of relevant evidence because of non-conformity to some legal rule can also undermine the factual quality of acquittals.
Western officials had also worried that it would undermine their efforts to build a joint state.
If desertification continues to spread, the dust bowl will not only undermine the economy but also trigger a huge migration eastward.
But, sooner or later the overhang of monetary liabilities would undermine confidence in the key currency.
The "ambitiousness" - meter really undermines this. Daring Fireball
When, for example, Karl and I made the simulation more realistic and allowed for mutations, or mistakes in an evolving population of players, then we saw cooperation and defection wax and wane over time, as those with a good reputation are actually undermined by indiscriminate altruists who help anyone, no matter how well or badly the latter have behaved in the past. SuperCooperators
Augustine undermines the question by pointing out that God did not bring creation into being at a certain definite moment in time, because time did not exist prior to creation. Augustine on Creation
Even the change in location from a gritty industrial city (Manchester, England) to a glossy, sunlit place like L.A. was a misstep that undermined the necessarily bleak tone.
The President has accused two cabinet ministers of working secretly to undermine his position/him.
`The whole organization's riddled with sinister ginger groups out to undermine the opposition in any way possible. THE DEVIL'S DOOR
Hilary Clinton's status as an erstwhile Obama rival might undermine the traditional trump card of a secretary of state.
We think countenancing any other position would totally undermine our members going about their duty and put them at phenomenal risk.
Faced with an abler opponent in Frederick Henry and undermined by Olivares, regent for the boy-king Philip IV, he returned to Spain in 1628 and was given a meaningless marquisate.
Others feel betrayed as mergers are seen to undermine disciplinary integrity.
Before disco undermined the morale and minds of millions, rock rode the rails of success, scoring the soundtrack for that personal motion picture you were playing in your head.
The 44 eminences charge that Britain's apparent lack of transparency and accountability threatens to undermine whatever moral high ground there is left.
The gradual unfreezing of the class structure has weakened party identification and undermined tribal politics. Times, Sunday Times
But potential obstacles can not be allowed to attack the legitimacy or undermine the potential feasibility of a new state.
There, non-governmental groups are proliferating as poverty increases and trade liberalisation undermines local economies.
As the disease progresses, the mucosal erosions coalesce to linear ulcers that undermine remaining mucosa.
When performing face lifts, plastic surgeons may opt to undermine the skip flap less to decrease the risk of slough, which results in a less than optimal lift.
Rivers undermine their banks.
The disaster was caused by the total collapse of his house in the Rue d' Anjou, undermined by the excavations carried out by the bank next door for its strong room.
At the same time, French ports, the gateway to the world under the Ancien Régime, were steadily undermined.
Owenson appears to ironize, even undermine, her main vehicle for explaining Ireland.
More generally, of course, economic inequality undermines social cohesion.
Senator McCain trotted out a truly weird attack against Senator Obama last night, accusing him of wanting to invade Pakistan and thereby undermine our good buddy President Musharraf. McCain: tough on Obama, soft on terrorists
After reaching its zenith in the mid-16th century, the Fugger banking empire was undermined by wars and the repeated bankruptcies of the Spanish state. In This Picturesque Village, the Rent Hasn't Been Raised Since 1520
As soon as the practice of students practising examination technique on unconscious and unconsenting patients becomes widely known, what remaining trust the public has in the medical profession will be further undermined.
The "overture" - the missionary's initial bonding with Muslims via discussion of the Koran - is precision-engineered to undermine their allegiance to Islam. GetReligion
The North's shrillness may also be an attempt to undermine the South as the North seeks a warming of relations with America as part of the talks over nuclear weapons.
It undermined the cozy predictability of their routines.
Paul wrote to warn about the subtle arguments and false teachings that threatened to undermine the Colossian 's faith.
This could undermine the enterprise economy and lead to a reduction in consumer choice.
Neufeld contends that peer orientation undermines family cohesion, poisons the school atmosphere and fosters an aggressively hostile and sexualized youth culture.
It is not clear whether Elizabeth is referring here to the deconstructionist theory of the late twentieth century which undermined the assumption that texts have intentional, recuperable meanings — in which case Kafka is a bad example, because his texts were recognized as being radically indeterminate in meaning well before the advent of poststructuralism — or whether she is saying that Kafka was a kind of prophet of deconstruction. Disturbing the Peace
This term continues to undermine the recovery of victims and plays down the enormity of the crimes so the perpetrators continually get away with pathetically short sentences. The Sun
The capacity of consumers to drive efficiency can be undermined by an inability to make an informed choice between plans.
Let me outline this in the form of two simple propositions: Modernity pluralizes the lifeworlds of individuals and consequently undermines all taken-for-granted certainties.
So instead you set out either to strengthen your position or to undermine his.
For Smith, then, nature becomes internal to capitalism in such a way that the very distinction implied by using these terms is eroded and undermined.
Its strong points are undermined by cloying sentimentality and whimsy. Times, Sunday Times
We resolutely oppose such and practices that contravene facts and undermine China - US relations.
This may need to be supported by actual action likely to undermine public confidence in the exchange.
She claimed the plans were unfeasible and said they would undermine the Government's previous efforts in promoting national museums.
Political deadlock since the country's general election a week ago has undermined investors' slender hopes that a new government can make credible spending cuts. Times, Sunday Times
The Secretary of Defence has said that he would not stand by and let democracy be undermined.
It would be a travesty if this case were to undermine the confidence of victims. Times, Sunday Times
But such concessions would undermine the very principles on which the case for tax reform is based.
These objective changes in the world economy have undermined the post-war framework of labour protection and social measures.
Following poems develop a manner of writing which relies heavily on language as a palimpsest of attitudes and learned response so as to undermine these.
Government policy should not undermine free broadcasting in favor of pay services offered by cable, phone and satellite companies.
Job losses and banking cutbacks have the potential to depress consumer spending, reduce tax receipts and undermine business confidence. Times, Sunday Times
The poshest hotels and some of the most prominent watering holes for tourists and the rich became charnel houses in massacres that threatened to undermine India's astonishing economic growth.
Will undermine your aspirations and sense of direction.
But if they undermine the norm - by converting altruistic activity to a mere cash nexus - they can fail. Times, Sunday Times
Reiber and Richard Wortman, who drew attentionto the despotic qualities that undermined the Tsar’s liberal reforms—See Alfred J. FORGE OF EMPIRES 1861-1871
It also undermines confidence in the system. Times, Sunday Times
Back in 2002, in a much-publicized debacle, the copy-protection scheme Sony used was undermined in a decidedly low-tech way: You simply needed to draw a line around the CD with a magic marker.
Schmidt, on the other hand, never used the term collateral damage -- or any similar term, because that would have completely undermined her fairy tale of righteous indignation. Gary S. Chafetz: Review of Casino Jack and the United States of Money by Alex Gibney
Indeed, visionary writers like William Blake, while tending to apocalyptic or millennial climaxes, continually undermine our sense of the reality of the world and of ourselves in ways that are both archaic and postapocalyptic.
This is an experienced party that failed to meet the basic requirements of the law, and cases like this undermine voters' confidence. Times, Sunday Times
Many coffee-shops are now following the same model, which could undermine the prospects for fee-based hotspots.
This week's atrocity in its economic capital should not undermine its progress.
The President has accused two cabinet ministers of working secretly to undermine his position/him.
There is no doubt that individual scientists have said things that are reprehensible and that they have been wrong but that in no way undermines the scientific enterprise.
Our work, however, is being undermined by false promises and short-term thinking.
Others said the approach will be unnecessarily costly and risk being undermined by a radical change to planning laws. Times, Sunday Times
When Haitian disobediently attempted to implement policies they had been elected to implement, they were undermined, and if necessary, kidnapped. Isabel Macdonald: Clinton Apologizes for U.S. Role in Destroying Haitian Democracy (Happy April Fool's Day!)
Regulatory tolerance of go-for-broke risk-taking by insolvent institutions undermines the stability of a country's financial system and allows institutional losses to cumulate relentlessly.
In 2003, the military, even under government control, staged a series of provocations that undermined the peace talks.
The example of harmonious and industrious living set by the missionaries was continually undermined by the licentious behaviour of visiting European traders.
Some questioned the veracity of the reports, fearing it could be an attempt to undermine the Nato air campaign. Times, Sunday Times
Whether a doctor withholds material information or simply ignores a lack of consent, she betrays the patient's trust and thereby undermines his autonomy.
She undermined him and destroyed his confidence in his own talent.
That could erode overall confidence in the economy and undermine the spending and investment needed to get it moving.
Damage to the brain's left side often undermines language abilities.
Everyday, mundane energies dictate that you let go of dishonest or negative relationships, especially those that undermine you, or draw forth your lower self.
Will the West undermine the legitimacy of the regimes it has just saved from the storm?
Will upending the old way of searching for the Dalai Lama's incarnation, in which priests search for omens, portents and meteorological signs, undermine the legitimacy of his successor?
Some recognize that men and women are different, but worry that tailoring their product or service to be meaningful to women could undermine their appeal to men.
The basic economic argument for the market system-that it tends to provide an efficient allocation of resources-Is not easily undermined.
He says, ‘We have undermined the purpose of the United Nations and caused its effectiveness to atrophy.’
Economic aid tends to undermine the national independence of third world countries.
copping some flak for suggesting that falling divorce rates are inconsistent with left-familist complaints that WorkChoices undermine the family. Andrew Norton
The report undermines the view that binge drinking is a problem confined to the younger generation. Times, Sunday Times
To put it schematically, I show that the animal runs alongside and undermines the narrative belief in subjective interiority as the sole marker of historical being.
The report found, among other defects, that the Iraqi High Tribunal was undermined from the outset by Iraqi government actions that threatened the independence and perceived impartiality of the court. Iraq
It further undermines the credibility of this silly policy. Times, Sunday Times
The subsequent "New Chapter" and the Future Capabilities reforms were undermined by the military's unexpectedly high operational tempo and the Treasury's parsimoniousness. Gordon Brown, Charlie Whelan and Me
These include efforts to: present the pronouncements of the President to be inconsistent, and at odds with established ANC policy; cover matters relating to the President's pending court case in a manner that undermines the principle of presumption of innocence; suggest conflict between the President, Deputy President and Treasurer General; make various other claims about Officials being "gagged", former NEC members being targeted for "dodgy deals", and the inaccurate reporting of ANC Today
That it will undermine referees and stem the flow of the game. The Sun
We're also told we're experiencing rampant house price inflation which will undermine inflation targets.
The developing countries are pressed to eliminate trade barriers, which can lead to local producers being undermined by cheaper imports.
It's a balancing act though because if the incentives are too generous, they could undermine the carrots being offered for GPs to work in the country.
The onomastic instability of the novel Don Quixote undermines all certainty of a linear reading.
The auditory ease of the merry mockeries of maidens is abruptly undermined by the trochaic retarding of the ‘sharp voices’ insisting on ‘maiden labour.’
Most dramatically, the position of the country's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei , has been sorely undermined.
We idolize success and status and thus undermine our mutual respect.
Does this undermine the value of art? Times, Sunday Times
This rather undermines his credibility as a detached observer.
The figures also undermine government attempts to rebalance the economy towards manufacturing, with the number of people employed in that sector down 15,000 during the past year. Times, Sunday Times
Yet like other Nazi agencies, the Labour Front did provide jobs and advancement for ideologically committed workers, and it became one of the fiefdoms which undermined the old state hierarchy.
People like your son disobey our laws, but I warn you firmly that we will not be undermined. DESPERADOES
Job losses and banking cutbacks have the potential to depress consumer spending, reduce tax receipts and undermine business confidence. Times, Sunday Times
This may only serve to aggravate matters further and undermine your role as a neutral.
All were acutely aware of the cultural richness of their country and all deeply appalled at the spoliation of their very special heritage and felt that their national identity had been attacked and undermined.
Do not punish yourself by wasting your time. Do not undermine yourself by surrendering to your negative habits. Dr T.P.Chia
It is a national characteristic that even when there is a cause to celebrate, we seek to undermine it.
What is unacceptable is thus that which undermines the totalizing vision; and totalizing visions are inevitably comprised from a facile distinction between truth/falsity, good/evil.
It seems a process of alienation has taken place that has undermined common sense and basic human decency.
A subversive is one who works to undermine the structures and shibboleths of society. A meme by any other name
Terrorist acts undermine the very basic of human rights, namely the right to live.
In the wide scheme of things, these behavioral deficits could, in the long term, undermine the ability of a species such as the deer mouse to reproduce in the wild.
They also suggest that Iran's pursuit of the nuclear fuel cycle likely will undermine foreign investment in its entire energy sector and dampen Iran's international trade prospects.
The tying of liberal loyalties to public-school-employees 'lobbies is a historical accident that has undermined the moral integrity of liberalism. Reversing White Flight
Hume notes the criticism that necessity undermines morality since it eliminates moral choice.
Failure to optimise the level of support to the caring team will undermine efforts to distribute annual leave evenly among nurses.
He or she must not undermine the primacy of democratic law-making by the organs of government directly or indirectly accountable to the people.
In almost all the houses, ancient frescoes and mosaics are at risk and the stability of the structures has been undermined by invading vegetation and periodic floods. Times, Sunday Times
And one of the leading newspapers here, the "Financial Times," which is not known as a softhearted liberal rag has said that this torture has really undermined America's moral authority abroad. CNN Transcript Sep 10, 2006
However, businesses will have to be vigilant to ensure that the effects of appreciation in the value of the euro do not undermine their trading position.
Such finds are controversial because they undermine a core academic belief about human history: that people prefer cohesive extended family groups. Times, Sunday Times
But the film's authentic feel is undermined by a series of political compromises.
Floods and droughts associated with global climate change could undermine health in other ways as well.
No major cross-regional analysis provides convincing evidence that Internet use is likely to undermine authoritarianism.
It did not want to undermine trust or uncover extraneous information that might damage agents' careers.
Firstly, the qualifications and skill mix of the labour force, which might be undermined by outward migration.
In essence, imperial overstretch demonstrates how America's ongoing exhaustion of its economic resources undermines important national security objectives.
Lussurioso undermines her first, more for her being a woman and a mother: "The name [of 'bawd']/is so in league with age that nowadays/It does eclipse three-quarters of a mother. Final drafting stuff:
The trends undermine a dichotomous view of British politics and society - a political dimension of left and right which correlates with two political parties and two social classes.
But clerical disapproval did not undermine the appeal of chivalric culture, with its glorification of courage, loyalty, and military ability.
He said paragraph 27 of the draft declaration of the conference which declared that the use of the term indigenous peoples "cannot be construed as having any implications to rights" would undermine the rights of minorities if it was accepted. ANC Daily News Briefing
We begin with the argument that the evidence for a Deity might be so strong as to undermine faith.
It should be surprising but liberating: and undermine the other ads in the commercial break.
By forswearing himself and violating his oath, he has undermined respect for the integrity of oaths.
They also found that neural stem cell division was significantly undermined by the drugs.
The President was infuriated that government efforts to eradicate poverty and improve livelihoods were undermined by what he called cancerous corruption that had eaten into government departments. New Vision Frontpage News
Hume believed that four factors undermine the credibility of reports of miracles.
It sickens me to see the system being undermined in the name of ‘saving’ and ‘efficiency.’
As always, the extent of dollar weakness was tempered by developments in Euroland which continue to undermine the upside potential of the single currency.
The repeated policy flip-flops of the Greens have undermined the base of that party as well.
Although the negotiation of rules is a constant process, this does not completely undermine the power of socialisation.
The potential of graphs to communicate effectively is consequently being undermined.
Against this backdrop, the right-of-center government led by Netanyahu appears to be committed to disfranchise Palestinians, suppress opposition, undermine democratic values and forsake the moral tenants on which the state of Israel was created. Alon Ben-Meir: Israel Needs a Palestinian State
Men had been undermined and emasculated to such an extent in a woman-dominated world that they would soon be little more than ‘sperm donors’, the article claimed.
The number of leaks is beginning to undermine the credibility of those who claim emails can be made secure.
Their plot is to undermine our confidence in the consumer society. Times, Sunday Times
While assuming a pose of utmost civility and cordiality, Caroline is relentless in her campaign to undermine me.
He added that lasting hardship is set to undermine centrist politics and fuel the rise of populist politics and politicians. Times, Sunday Times
In the containment stage, central banks need to lend quickly, to avoid a liquidity crisis that will undermine sound institutions.
Anyone who wishes to make it with Leo must never undermine the leonine dignity, or they will surely suffer the claws of the cat.
Wilde, who could never resist an aphorism, frequently undermines the seriousness of his beliefs by his brilliant and paradoxical style.
He constantly tried to undermine her self-confidence.
The Red Army Faction tried to undermine the state by terror tactics .
They did not say the calls undermined civilian control of national security. From On High
Their value and purpose would be undermined if the security was always defeasible on a transfer of his reversion by the reversioner.
Private patriarchy became increasingly circumscribed by laws that undermined male authority within the family.
To be sure, a large-enough drop in heating oil demand could undermine a rebound in prices, analysts said.
Instead, you will find hidden agendas and other problems continuing to undermine your collective performance and change.
The main reason for dissatisfaction is reception problems, which rather undermines the digital TV message of clearer pictures. Digital TV Switchover: We’re Clueless And Sometimes Unhappy | Lifehacker Australia
An anarchist sets out to undermine Britain's totalitarian government. The Sun
The prosecution did its best to undermine the credibility of the witness.
The heavy-handed treatment of his opponent is likely to undermine public support for a deeply unpopular regime. Times, Sunday Times
It will drop demands that poor countries adhere to destructive, gender-blind policy agendas that undermine rural agriculture, health and education. World Bank must put its money behind the rhetoric on gender equality | Elizabeth Arend
The military hierarchy claims that it would undermine the chain of command. Times, Sunday Times
Morales later kicked out the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, accusing it of espionage and of funding "criminal groups" seeking to undermine his government.
Do not punish yourself by wasting your time. Do not undermine yourself by surrendering to your negative habits. Dr T.P.Chia
Exploiting Lebanon's fractiousness, Syria pushed its allies to undermine the pro-Western coalition that won Lebanon's general election in 2005.
For, if thou hadst beene wise, as thou makest the world to beleeve by outward apparance, thou wouldest never have expressed such a basenesse of minde, to borrow the coulour of a sanctified cloake, thereby to undermine the secrets of thine honest meaning Wife. The Decameron
Freedom of expression is therefore, one of the very first freedoms to be curtailed when a democracy is being undermined, either as a prelude to a coup d'état or as an early step in the process of gradual tyrannization.
Globalisation undermined the nation state system upon which capitalism is historically based.
There is no reason to believe that the juror in question has received information which might undermine his ability to judge this case dispassionately.
Gompers himself believed strongly that a test of a man's worth was his ability to support a family, and that women in the work force would undermine men's positions as heads of their families.
It does not wholly undermine the principle though it does leave it somewhat tarnished.
Those claimants undermine the claims of genuine asylum seekers, and no one would wish to defend them.
Confidence in the underlying credit market has been undermined and contagion effects are spreading into adjacent markets.
By providing increased firepower, it both made fortification more difficult, and undermined the power of cavalry.
Not merely would it hit the flow of new projects, it would undermine the tax planning of existing American operations in Ireland, loosening the ties that bind them to what is, in economic terms at least, the 51st state of the union.
What ultimately undermines the presentation of these seemingly monadic fragments of a stable Cartesian subjectivity in this text is its material referent - the place memorialised as the location of writing.
To suggest that students might opt out on grounds of conscience or sensitivity undermines the pursuit of academic excellence and is intellectually unsound. Times, Sunday Times

How To Use Undermine In A Sentence

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