Expressing a desire to ward off something unwanted; seeking to appease or apologize; attempting to prevent or turn away.
From Latin deprecatorius, from deprecari (to pray away or avert), related to depreciate but with the primary meaning of 'warding off' or 'appeasing' rather than 'reducing value.'
A 'deprecatory gesture' actually means apologetic or peace-making—it's confusing because 'depreciatory' evolved a completely different meaning from its cousin 'depreciative,' showing how word families can drift apart in meaning over centuries.
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