patronize

verb/ˈpeɪtrəˌnaɪz/

Frequency rank: #16,860 of 20,003 in the WORDED list (wordfreq data)

Meaning

To treat someone as if they are less intelligent or capable than they really are.

Illustration for the English word “patronize”

Example sentence

Some customers feel that the staff tends to patronize them by explaining things they already know.

Synonyms & related words

More words in ranks 16,801–16,900