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pej·o·ra·tion

pejoration

 
pronunciation:
pe j reI shn [or] pi j reI shn
part of speech: noun
definition 1: a lessening or worsening in worth, quality, or the like; depreciation.
definition 2: the historical process by which a word acquires increasingly negative connotation, and eventually, negative denotation. (Cf. melioration.)