mortifier
to mortify, to humiliate deeply
verb mor-tee-FYEH Rare
Origin: From Latin 'mortificare' (to put to death, to subdue).
Usage Note
Mortifier in modern French primarily means to cause intense embarrassment or humiliation — cette remarque l'a mortifié ('that remark mortified him'). Its older religious sense of subduing bodily desires (mortifier la chair) survives in theological contexts. The adjective mortifiant(e) ('mortifying, humiliating') is commonly used in everyday speech.
Examples
"Cette erreur en public l'a profondément mortifié."
Natural Translation
That public mistake deeply mortified him.
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