1
as in degenerate
having lost forcefulness, courage, or spirit
social critics claimed that their culture had become decadent and weak
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in corrupt
having or showing lowered moral character or standards
opponents of gambling casinos claim that gambling is a decadent form of entertainment
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in luxurious
given to or marked by excessive gratification of one's desires
the impressionable heiress couldn't resist the decadent temptations of the jet-set life
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in pervert
a person who has sunk below the normal moral standard
avant-garde artists who were scorned by the bourgeoisie as talentless decadents
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in hedonist
a person whose life is devoted to luxury and sensual pleasures
a decadent who squandered her once considerable family fortune
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of decadent
Patricia S York, Southern Living, 1 June 2026
Clementine's Clementine’s serves decadent ice cream in a whole host of creative flavors.
—Robert Annis, Midwest Living, 31 May 2026
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 Apr. 2026
Heather might bring something homemade and decadent to finish, like Ina Garten’s chocolate brownie pudding.
—Kate McGregor, Architectural Digest, 3 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for decadent
Adjective
For similar reasons to using milk, butter adds a rich and more decadent quality to the batter.
—Patricia S York, Southern Living, 1 June 2026
Clementine's Clementine’s serves decadent ice cream in a whole host of creative flavors.
—Robert Annis, Midwest Living, 31 May 2026
Noun
Like the rest of the menu, desserts are light but decadent.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 Apr. 2026
Heather might bring something homemade and decadent to finish, like Ina Garten’s chocolate brownie pudding.
—Kate McGregor, Architectural Digest, 3 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for decadent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for decadent
Adjective
-
As her life begins overlapping with the events of the film, she’s confronted with her own degenerate desires, as the Nazis would call them.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
26 May 2026
-
Now playback all the degenerate, violent entertainment Julianne has happily participated in throughout her career.—
Lori A Bashian,
FOXNews.com,
17 May 2026
Adjective
-
Fujimori is linked to the authoritarian and corrupt legacy of the government of her late father, Alberto Fujimori, in the 1990s.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
7 June 2026
-
Of course, all of this convenient acquiescence will sound familiar in the United States, where our own Congress and Department of Justice have been nothing if not servile to a brazenly corrupt executive.—
Daniel Alarcón,
New Yorker,
4 June 2026
Adjective
-
All game was fair game, and eating wild things was both luxurious and banal—throughout the country the consumption of wild animals was entirely typical.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 June 2026
-
The spa Tucked away from the hotel’s main areas is the luxurious Lanesborough Club & Spa, an urban oasis widely recognized as one of the city's most exclusive wellness addresses.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 June 2026
Noun
-
Nora Ephron for depressed perverts.—
Antonia Blyth,
Deadline,
16 Feb. 2026
-
You are being spied on by a pervert.—
Jay Ruttenberg,
New Yorker,
11 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
And what fame gave me, what addiction fueled was opportunity for endless consent, which led me to be a hedonist and a fool and an exploiter of women.—
Taijuan Moorman,
USA Today,
23 Apr. 2026
-
And what fame gave me and what my addiction fueled was opportunity for endless consent, which led me to be a hedonist and a fool and an exploiter of women.—
Lindsay Kimble,
PEOPLE,
23 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Republicans have sought to cast him as an effete extremist.—
Aidan McLaughlin,
Vanity Fair,
29 May 2026
-
Scarf critics accuse the accessory—and by extension, its wearers—of being effete or affected.—
Eric Twardzik,
Robb Report,
1 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Even when degraded, enzymes have stable backbones that might be capable of catalyzing reactions, said Sudha Rajamani, an astrobiologist at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune who wasn’t involved in the study.—
Siddhant Pusdekar,
Quanta Magazine,
1 June 2026
-
According to the company, QTT enables highly secure and resilient position, navigation, and timing (PNT) services, helping maintain accurate timing and synchronization even when traditional GPS and radio-frequency signals are unavailable, degraded, or intentionally jammed.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
30 May 2026
Adjective
-
There's a sensual coo just waiting to whisper out of you this week, Sagittarius, so be sure to set aside some time for intimacy.—
Kyle Thomas,
PEOPLE,
7 June 2026
-
The contemporary luxury womenswear brand includes structured pieces with statement cutouts aplenty in the sensual designs from Mizrahi.—
Julia Teti,
Footwear News,
4 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Decadent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/decadent. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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