UHN-dur-meye-ning
/ˈʌndɚˌmaɪnɪŋ/
undermining is pronounced UHN-dur-meye-ning (/ˈʌndɚˌmaɪnɪŋ/). Undermining is the act of gradually weakening or sabotaging someone or something, often covertly, so that their authority, effectiveness, or confidence erodes over time. It implies subtle, sustained action rather than a single overt blow, and is commonly used to describe political, organizational, or personal dynamics. The term carries a negative, adversarial connotation and signals deliberate impairment.
Undermining is the act of gradually weakening or sabotaging someone or something, often covertly, so that their authority, effectiveness, or confidence erodes over time. It implies subtle, sustained action rather than a single overt blow, and is commonly used to describe political, organizational, or personal dynamics. The term carries a negative, adversarial connotation and signals deliberate impairment.
"The manager accused the consultant of undermining the team by questioning every decision in public."
"Whispers about budget cuts and reassignments undermined the project’s morale."
"If you undermine your opponent’s argument with solid evidence, you’re strengthening your own position."
Pronounce as un-DER-min-ing, with primary stress on the second syllable. IPA: US ˌʌn.dɚˈmaɪ.nɪŋ, UK ˌʌn.dəˈmaɪnɪŋ, AU ˌʌn.dəˈmaɪnɪŋ. Start with /ʌ/ as in 'cup', then /n/ + /d/ cluster. The mid syllable contains /ɚ/ or /ə/ depending on accent, followed by /maɪ/ (like 'my'), then /nɪŋ/ with a short /ɪ/ and /ŋ/ at the end. Keep the tongue slightly bunched for the rhotics in US, and drop the rhotic color in non-rhotic variants.
Common errors: (1) Placing primary stress on the first syllable as in un-DER-, which reduces the word’s natural cadence; (2) Mispronouncing the /ɚ/ as a full /ɜr/ or merging /maɪ/ with a dull /mʌɪ/; (3) Failing to pronounce the final /ŋ/ clearly, often ending with an /ɪn/ or /ɪŋ/ blended. Correction: keep secondary syllables lighter, articulate /ə/ or /ɚ/ in the second syllable, ensure /maɪ/ is a clean /maɪ/ rather than a blended /mɒɪ/. Finish with a crisp /ŋ/ by lifting the vowel before, avoiding a nasalized off-glide.
US tends to rhotic /ɚ/ in the second syllable and a clear /ŋ/ at the end; UK often reduces the second syllable vowel to /ə/ and may use a non-rhotic /ˈmæɪnɪŋ/ in rapid speech, with slight vowel coloring in /maɪ/. Australian usually echoes UK patterns but with broader diphthongs and a brighter /ɪ/ in /ɪŋ/. Emphasize the second syllable in all accents; the vowel quality in /maɪ/ remains central to listener recognition.
The difficulty lies in the two consonant clusters: /n/ followed by /d/ across syllable boundary and the vowel in /ɚ/ or /ə/ in the second syllable, plus the final /ŋ/. The glide from /ɪ/ to /ŋ/ can be slippery in rapid speech. Practice a clean /d/ release after /n/ and ensure the second syllable carries the primary energy. Focus on maintaining steady tempo so the /maɪ/ stays intact between /d/ and /ŋ/.
Note the middle syllable carries the root vowel /maɪ/ with a clear long I; do not reduce it to /maɪɾ/ or /maɪn/. Use a crisp /maɪ/ plus a strong /n/ onset before the final /ɪŋ/. Visualize spelling as un-der-MY-ning if it helps anchor the right syllable emphasis, but maintain the standard phonetic sequence /ʌn.dɚ/ or /ʌn.də/ before /maɪ/.
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Undermining derives from the combination of under- (a prefix meaning ‘beneath’ or ‘below’) and mine, originally as a verb meaning to dig or excavate. The figurative sense—‘to undermine someone’—emerged in the 19th century, drawing on mining imagery of undermining a support to cause collapse. The earliest recorded uses in English appear in military and political contexts, where covert actions could erode an opponent’s stability. By the 20th century, the term broadened to describe indirect, covert sabotage in workplaces, institutions, and personal relationships. The word is built from Old English under-, with roots akin to German unter- and Dutch onder-, connected to lifting or supporting structures, and -ing as a gerund/participial suffix, indicating ongoing action. The evolving sense reflects a shift from literal undermining of physical supports to abstract undermining of authority, confidence, or legitimacy, retained in modern idiomatic usage across policy, corporate, and social spheres.
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Words that rhyme with "undermining"
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