definitions

debauch

[ dih-bawch ]
/ dɪˈbɔtʃ /
||
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR debauch ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to corrupt by sensuality, intemperance, etc.; seduce.
to corrupt or pervert; sully: His honesty was debauched by the prospect of easy money.
Archaic. to lead away, as from allegiance or duty.

verb (used without object)

to indulge in debauchery.

noun

a period of wanton or sensual self-indulgence.
an uninhibited spree or party; orgy: a wild debauch.

RELATED WORDS

libertine, degenerate, scoundrel, Lothario, cad, ravisher

Nearby words

debar, debark, debase, debatable, debate, debauch, debauched, debauchee, debaucherous, debauchery, debbie

Origin of debauch

1585–95; < 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 (< Germanic; see balcony, balk; compare French ébaucher to rough-hew); hence, presumably, to hew (beams) > to split, separate > to separate from work or duty

Related forms

de·bauch·er, nounde·bauch·ment, noun

Can be confused

debauch debouch
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for debaucher

  • What surprises me yet more is, that some would believe that Socrates was a debaucher of young men!

    The Memorable Thoughts of Socrates|Xenophon

  • Happily they found not that pernicious bane which is alike the corrupter of private morals and the debaucher of nations.

    The Knight of the Golden Melice|John Turvill Adams

  • The desires of a drunkard, a debaucher, are as strong after death as before.

    Ghosts I Have Seen|Violet Tweedale

  • For he is said to be the debaucher of the wives of others; he is the shameless lover and ravisher of a beautiful boy.

    The City of God, Volume I|Aurelius Augustine

British Dictionary definitions for debaucher

debauch

/ (dɪˈbɔːtʃ) /

verb

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

noun

an instance or period of extreme dissipation

Derived Forms

debauchedly (dɪˈbɔːtʃɪdlɪ), adverbdebauchedness, noundebaucher, noundebauchery or debauchment, noun

Word Origin for debauch

C16: from Old French desbaucher to corrupt, literally: to shape (timber) roughly, from bauch beam, of Germanic origin
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012