demoralizing

verb (used with object), de·mor·al·ized, de·mor·al·iz·ing.

1. to deprive (a person or persons) of spirit, courage, discipline, etc.; destroy the morale of: The continuous barrage demoralized the infantry.
2. to throw (a person) into disorder or confusion; bewilder: We were so demoralized by that one wrong turn that we were lost for hours.
3. to corrupt or undermine the morals of.

verb (tr)

1. to undermine the morale of; disheartenhe was demoralized by his defeat
2. to debase morally; corrupt
3. to throw into confusion

v.

c.1793, “to corrupt the morals of,” from French démoraliser, from de- “remove” (see de-) + moral (adj.) (see moral). Said to be a coinage of the French Revolution. Sense of “lower the morale of” (especially of armies) is first recorded 1848. Related: Demoralized; demoralizing.