Main Entry: de·gen·er·a·tion

Pronunciation: \di-ˌje-nə-ˈrā-shən, ˌdē-\

Function: noun

Date: 15th century

1 : degenerate condition
2 : a lowering of effective power, vitality, or essential quality to an enfeebled and worsened kind or state
3 : intellectual, moral, or artistic decline
4 a : progressive deterioration of physical characters from a level representing the norm of earlier generations or forms b : deterioration of a tissue or an organ in which its function is diminished or its structure is impaired

synonyms see deterioration