debauch

American  

[dih-bawch] / dɪˈbɔtʃ /

verb (used with object)

1. to corrupt by sensuality, intemperance, etc.; seduce.

2. to corrupt or pervert; sully.

   His honesty was debauched by the prospect of easy money.

3. Archaic. to lead away, as from allegiance or duty.

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verb (used without object)

1. to indulge in debauchery.

noun

1. a period of wanton or sensual self-indulgence.

2. an uninhibited spree or party; orgy.

   a wild debauch.

debauch British  

/ dɪˈbɔːtʃ, dɪˈbɔːtʃɪdlɪ /

verb

1. (when tr, usually passive) to lead into a life of depraved self-indulgence

2. (tr) to seduce (a woman)

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noun

1. an instance or period of extreme dissipation

Other Word Forms

• debauchedly adverb
• debauchedness noun
• debaucher noun
• debauchery noun
• debauchment noun

Etymology

Origin of debauch

First recorded in 1585–95; from French débaucher “to entice away from duty, debauch,” Old French desbauchier “to disperse, scatter,” equivalent to des- dis- ¹ + -bauchier, derivative of bauc, bauch beam (from Germanic; balcony, balk; compare French ébaucher “to rough-hew”); hence, presumably, “to hew (beams),” becoming “to split, separate,” becoming “to separate from work or duty”

Explanation

Debauch means to destroy or corrupt someone's morals. Overnight fame and wealth might debauch a previously mild-mannered and altruistic actor. As a noun, debauch refers to a wild party characterized by excess. The old-fashioned meaning of debauch involved antiquated ideas about virtue and the idea that a person's "moral purity" could be corrupted. Today this word is mostly used when a person's integrity or principles are corrupted, often under the influence of money or power. You might say that artists debauch themselves when their designs show up on mass produced T-shirts. As a noun, debauch refers to an out-of-control party — in other words, a gathering at which one's morals might be corrupted.

Example Sentences

“There is no subtler, no surer means of overturning the existing basis of society than to debauch the currency,” John Maynard Keynes wrote in 1919 in “The Economic Consequences of the Peace.”

From New York Times • Dec. 10, 2021

“I did really debauch myself to achieve a visual at the time” is how he remembers it.

From The New Yorker • Sep. 15, 2016

We’ve not had a debasement of the currency, a debauch of the exchange rate, so those fears and warnings aren’t all that well founded.

From Forbes • Feb. 13, 2015

Lastly, the Gabfest crew takes a look at Google’s new smartphone for your face, Google Glass: Will it extend our human powers or finally debauch them for good?

From Slate • May 22, 2013

The music, the anthem of Saturday night debauch, filtered to them through the jail stones that now enveloped them, isolated them with Junior Palmer.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy