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| mor·ti·fy [ máwrtə f ] (past and past participle mor·ti·fied, present participle mor·ti·fy·ing, 3rd person present singular mor·ti·fies) |
verb |
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| Definition: |
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1. transitive verb shame somebody: to make somebody feel deeply ashamed and humiliated
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2. transitive verb religion impose hardship on self: to attempt to subdue the body or desires and passions by self-imposed discipline, hardship, abstinence from pleasure, and especially self-inflicted pain, usually for religious purposes
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3. intransitive verb medicine decay: to decay and die
(
refers to living tissue
)
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| [14th century. Via Old French mortifier< Latin mortificare "kill" < mort- "death"] |
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  mor·ti·fy·ing adjective |
| mor·ti·fy·ing·ly adverb |
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