different between undermine vs underdig

English

Etymology

From under- +? mine.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?nd??ma?n/
• Rhymes: -a?n

Verb

undermine (third-person singular simple present undermines, present participle undermining, simple past and past participle undermined)

1. To dig underneath (something), to make a passage for destructive or military purposes; to sap. [from 14th c.]
   • 2009, Diarmaid MacCulloch, A History of Christianity, Penguin 2010, p. 312:

     Martin, for instance, had on one occasion undermined a tree sacred to old gods, then stood in the path of its fall, but forced it to fall elsewhere by making the sign of the Cross.

2. (figuratively) To weaken or work against; to hinder, sabotage. [from 15th c.]

3. To erode the base or foundation of something, e.g. by the action of water.

Antonyms

• undergird

Translations

Further reading

• undermine in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• undermine in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• undermine at OneLook Dictionary Search
• “undermine”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–present.

English

Etymology

under- +? dig

Verb

underdig (third-person singular simple present underdigs, present participle underdigging, simple past and past participle underdug)

1. (transitive, obsolete) To dig under or beneath; to undermine.

Anagrams

• ungirded, unridged