mortify
UK: ˈmɔːtɪfaɪ | US: ˈmɔːrtɪfaɪ
vt. 1. To cause someone to feel humiliated or ashamed.
vt. 2. (Archaic) To subdue or deaden (the body or desires) through discipline or self-denial.
vi. 3. (Medicine, archaic) To undergo necrosis or gangrene.
The word traces back to Late Latin mortificare ("to kill, destroy"), combining mors (death) and -ficare (to make). Originally used in religious contexts (14th c.) for "subduing the flesh through penance," it later generalized to emotional humiliation (16th c.). The medical sense of "tissue death" (now rare) reflects its literal root.
His public failure mortified him for years.
Medieval monks mortified their bodies to achieve spiritual purity.
The surgeon noted the tissue began to mortify after the infection.
She was mortified when her phone rang during the ceremony.
Critics argue social media can mortify self-esteem.