Answer:
D) At a lower, less dignified status or level
Step-by-step explanation:
When you're unsure about what a word means, you can look it up in a dictionary - an alphabetically arranged listing of words that contains different information about them, such as their definitions, examples, origin, pronunciation, etc. If we take a look in a dictionary, we can see that the word degraded has two basic meanings:
- treated or regarded with contempt or disrespect
- inferior in quality, rank, position, reputation, etc.
Another thing that can help us determine what an unfamiliar word means is context - words and phrases that surround it. However, the given sentence alone isn't enough for us to determine what the word degraded means, so the definition from a dictionary can help us. Based on it, we can conclude that option D is the correct one.