degenerate
verb (used without object)
to fall below a normal or desirable level in physical, mental, or moral qualities; deteriorate.
was degenerating
-
past progressiveof degenerate.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
As with many people with Alzheimer’s, the man’s hippocampus — a brain region controlling learning and memory — was smaller than average at the time of his death, suggesting that it was degenerating.
From Scientific American ● May 17, 2023
Then doctors told them what tests revealed: Their daughter’s brain was degenerating and would continue to do so until she passed away.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 27, 2022
But where they tried to wield government power--to remoralize a culture they believed was degenerating before their eyes--they hit a wall.
From Time Magazine Archive
Even as the case against Manuel Noriega was degenerating into a legal three- ring circus, the country he once dominated was mired in a deep slump.
From Time Magazine Archive
Judge Russell complained that now St. Mark's had taken to high-church customs, and the Terrace was degenerating, it was time for him to be put away in Spring Hill Cemetery.
From The Pleasant Street Partnership A Neighborhood Story by Frank T. (Frank Thayer) Merrill
