degeneracy
Americannoun
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degenerate state or character.
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the process of degenerating; decline.
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degenerate behavior, especially behavior considered sexually deviant.
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Physics. the number of distinct quantum states of a system that have a given energy.
noun
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the act or state of being degenerate
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the process of becoming degenerate
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physics the number of degenerate quantum states of a particular orbital, degree of freedom, energy level, etc
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of degeneracy
First recorded in 1655–65; degener(ate) + -acy
Vocabulary lists containing degeneracy
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“I had planned on having a wonderful time, get lost in the debauchery, degeneracy, but I discovered something else, deeper, more profound.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026
Viewers considered it, as one art historian would write later, either “a symbol of the ultimate in moral degeneracy or as a mad and irresponsible joke.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Las Vegas took your money with gracious respect for your degeneracy, gouging you sweetly and slowly.
From Slate ● Nov. 18, 2025
It would be unfair to place the sole blame for the degeneracy of civil norms on one segment of the public.
From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2024
Poetry was a symptom of weakness, of degeneracy and decay.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
