relegate

Universal Words verb [VN] 1 ~ sb/sth (to sth) to give sb a lower or less important position, rank, etc. than before: She was then relegated to the role of assistant. * He relegated the incident to the back of his mind. 2 [usuallypassive] (especially BrE) to move a sports team, especially a football team, to a lower position within an official LEAGUE OPPPROMOTE relegation noun [U]: teams threatened with relegation