rot

[rot]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR rot ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), rot·ted, rot·ting.

to undergo decomposition; decay.

to deteriorate, disintegrate, fall, or become weak due to decay (often followed by away, from, off, etc.).

to languish, as in confinement.

to become morally corrupt or offensive.

verb (used with object), rot·ted, rot·ting.

to cause to rot: Dampness rots wood.

to cause moral decay in; cause to become morally corrupt.

to ret (flax, hemp, etc.).

noun

the process of rotting.

the state of being rotten; decay; putrefaction: the rot of an old house.

rotting or rotten matter: the rot and waste of a swamp.

moral or social decay or corruption.

Pathology. any disease characterized by decay.

Plant Pathology.

any of various forms of decay produced by fungi or bacteria.
any disease so characterized.

Veterinary Pathology. a bacterial infection of sheep and cattle characterized by decay of the hoofs, caused by Fusobacterium necrophorum in cattle and Bacteroides nodosus in sheep.

nonsense.

interjection

(used to express disagreement, distaste, or disgust.)

Origin of rot

before 900; (v.) Middle English rot(t)en, Old English rotian, cognate with Frisian rotsje, Dutch rotten; (noun) Middle English, perhaps < Old Norse rot (perhaps partly derivative of the v.); cf. ret, rotten)

Related formshalf-rot·ted, adjectiveun·rot·ted, adjective

Synonyms for rot

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR rot ON THESAURUS.COM

1. mold, molder, putrefy, spoil. 9. decomposition, mold.

Synonym study

1. See decay.

Antonyms for rot

4, 6. purify.

ROT

rule of thumb.

rot.

rotating.

rotation.

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

Related Words for rot

blight, decomposition, deterioration, decay, perish, disintegrate, warp, crumble, wither, spoil, molder, stain, decompose, languish, putrefaction, putrescence, mold, canker, hogwash, silliness

Examples from the Web for rot

Contemporary Examples of rot

So Little Snow White lay in the coffin for a long, long time but did not rot.
In New Brothers Grimm 'Snow White', The Prince Doesn't Save Her
The Brothers Grimm
November 30, 2014
Gary has been broken for a while, and it looks like much of it has been left to rot.
Gary, Indiana Is a Serial Killer’s Playground
Justin Glawe
October 22, 2014
And the willingness to dump on British women in the name of Sharia law is a rot that runs up and down the length of society.
How Britain Made James Foley's Killer
Louise Mensch
August 27, 2014
As ever, he talked too big (it was an election year) about withdrawing from Iraq with honor and all that rot.
GOP Iraq Hypocrisy Hits Overdrive
Michael Tomasky
June 16, 2014
“Biofuel” can be made out of anything that will ferment or rot, including digestive system waste products.
The Federal Government Has Violated My Right to Chainsaw
P. J. O’Rourke
April 27, 2014

Historical Examples of rot

He had too much insight, and too much exact information as well, to dismiss them as rot.
The Secret Agent
Joseph Conrad
Throw me on a dunghill, and let me rot there, to infect the air!'
The Life And Adventures Of Nicholas Nickleby
Charles Dickens
What rot not to know their places, when they must know them!
Ruggles of Red Gap
Harry Leon Wilson
I'm really writing all this rot to get myself into the "twitter-twitter" mood.
Changing Winds
St. John G. Ervine
Why, the mill-stones wear away with rot more than with grinding corn.
Fruitfulness
Emile Zola

British Dictionary definitions for rot

rot

verb rots, rotting or rotted

to decay or cause to decay as a result of bacterial or fungal action

(intr ; usually foll by off or away) to fall or crumble (off) or break (away), as from natural decay, corrosive action, or long use

(intr) to become weak, debilitated, or depressed through inertia, confinement, etc; languishrotting in prison

to become or cause to become morally corrupt or degenerate

(tr) textiles another word for ret

noun

the process of rotting or the state of being rotten

something decomposed, disintegrated, or degenerateRelated adjective: putrid

short for dry rot

pathol any putrefactive decomposition of tissues

a condition in plants characterized by breakdown and decay of tissues, caused by bacteria, fungi, etc

vet science a contagious fungal disease of the feet of sheep characterized by inflammation, swelling, a foul-smelling discharge, and lameness

(also interjection) nonsense; rubbish

Word Origin for rot

Old English rotian (vb); related to Old Norse rotna . C13 (noun), from Scandinavian

rot

abbreviation for

rotation (of a mathematical function)

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

Word Origin and History for rot

Old English rotian "to decay, putrefy," from Proto-Germanic *rutjan (cf. Old Saxon roton, Old Norse rotna, Old Frisian rotia, Middle Dutch roten, Dutch rotten, Old High German rozzen "to rot," German rößen "to steep flax"), from stem *rut-. Related: Rotted; rotting.

early 14c., from rot (v.) or of Scandinavian origin (cf. Icelandic rot, Swedish röta, Danish røde "decay, putrefaction"), from the root of the verb. Slang noun sense of "rubbish, trash" is from 1848.

rot in Science

rot

[rŏt]

Verb

To undergo decomposition, especially organic decomposition; decay.

Noun

Any of several plant diseases characterized by the breakdown of tissue and caused by various bacteria or fungi.