Main Entry: ¹de·gen·er·ate

Pronunciation: \di-ˈjen-(ə-)rət\

Function: adjective

1 a : having declined (as in nature, character, structure, or function) from an ancestral or former state ; especially : having deteriorated progressively (as in the process of evolution) especially through loss of structure and function b : having sunk to a lower and usually corrupt and vicious state
2 : having more than one codon representing an amino acid ; also : being such a codon