degenerate
Americanverb (used without object)
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to fall below a normal or desirable level in physical, mental, or moral qualities; deteriorate.
The morale of the soldiers degenerated, and they were unable to fight.
- Synonyms:
- retrogress, backslide, decline, worsen
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to diminish in quality, especially from a former state of coherence, balance, integrity, etc..
The debate degenerated into an exchange of insults.
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Pathology. to lose functional activity, as a tissue or organ.
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Evolution. (of a species or any of its traits or structures) to revert to a simple, less highly organized, or less functionally active type, as a parasitic plant that has lost its taproot or the vestigial wings of a flightless bird.
verb (used with object)
adjective
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having fallen below a normal or desirable level, especially in physical or moral qualities; deteriorated; degraded.
a degenerate king.
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having lost, or become impaired with respect to, the qualities proper to the species or kind.
a degenerate vine.
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characterized by or associated with degeneracy.
degenerate times.
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Mathematics. pertaining to a limiting case of a mathematical system that is more symmetrical or simpler in form than the general case.
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Physics.
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(of modes of vibration of a system) having the same frequency.
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(of quantum states of a system) having equal energy.
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noun
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a person who has declined, as in morals or character, from a type or standard considered normal.
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a person or thing that reverts to an earlier stage of culture, development, or evolution.
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a sexual deviate.
verb
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to become degenerate
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biology (of organisms or their parts) to become less specialized or functionally useless
adjective
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having declined or deteriorated to a lower mental, moral, or physical level; debased; degraded; corrupt
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physics
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(of the constituents of a system) having the same energy but different wave functions
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(of a semiconductor) containing a similar number of electrons in the conduction band to the number of electrons in the conduction band of metals
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(of a resonant device) having two or more modes of equal frequency
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(of a code) containing symbols that represent more than one letter, figure, etc
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(of a plant or animal) having undergone degeneration
noun
Other Word Forms
- degenerately adverb
- degenerateness noun
- nondegenerate adjective
- nondegenerately adverb
- nondegenerateness noun
- predegenerate adjective
- undegenerate adjective
- undegenerated adjective
- undegenerating adjective
Etymology
Origin of degenerate
First recorded in 1485–95; from Latin dēgenerātus “declined,” past participle of dēgenerāre “to decline from an ancestral standard, deteriorate”; equivalent to de- + generate
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’m kind of glad that I’m not so much of a degenerate anymore.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 25, 2026
“Degen” is a term that alludes to degenerate gamblers and first gained popularity on Reddit to refer to investors who gravitate toward wildly risky strategies.
From MarketWatch • Dec. 15, 2025
His screen persona has often been the sleaziest of weasels, the connoisseur’s moral degenerate.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 23, 2025
It’s been a huge month for all the degenerate gamblers hoping to cash in on the United States’ elections.
From Slate • Sep. 20, 2024
Rushing, degenerate mutter of noises I send out before me wherever I creep, like a dragon burning his way through vines and fog.
From "Grendel" by John Gardner
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
