as in deterioration
a gradual sinking and wasting away of mind or body
the decaying of the bone mass that is so regrettably common in elderly women
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in rotting
to go through decomposition
the logs decayed on the rain forest floor the atom of plutonium decayed in the test chamber
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in deteriorating
to become worse or of less value
the restaurant's standards for food and service had decayed over the years
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in fading
to lose bodily strength or vigor
having reached her 80s, the woman could sense that her body was decaying
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in ramshackle
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
2
as in dying
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of decaying
Ethan Siegel, Big Think, 3 Oct. 2025
As a result, when animals died and sank, their soft tissues were occasionally preserved instead of being consumed or decaying.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 29 Sep. 2025
Understanding Roly Poly Bugs Pillbugs and sowbugs are generalist scavengers, feeding on fungi, decaying matter, and occasionally plants, says Benson.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 23 Sep. 2025
Although that serves as the lynchpin of Hinako's journey through both her decaying town and the Otherworld, a strange realm that manifests itself through Hinako's fears and anxieties, the teenager's journey is rooted in more than just angst.
—Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 23 Sep. 2025
There is natural beauty, too, with landscapes of Trento, Italy’s trees changing and decaying over time informing a lot of the textures.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 23 Sep. 2025
Three dead mice, two of them decaying, were also found in the basement, the report said.
—Jennifer Rodriguez, Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2025
Communities that end fluoridation will see more decaying teeth, according to Margherita Fontana, a professor at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry.
—Anna Clark, ProPublica, 18 Sep. 2025
At various points along that decaying value chain, Carr has a lot of power.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
For another, there’s the DESI data, our best large-scale structure data at present, which seems to slightly favor the presence of evolving (and, in particular, decaying or weakening) dark energy.
—Ethan Siegel, Big Think, 3 Oct. 2025
As a result, when animals died and sank, their soft tissues were occasionally preserved instead of being consumed or decaying.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 29 Sep. 2025
Understanding Roly Poly Bugs Pillbugs and sowbugs are generalist scavengers, feeding on fungi, decaying matter, and occasionally plants, says Benson.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 23 Sep. 2025
Although that serves as the lynchpin of Hinako's journey through both her decaying town and the Otherworld, a strange realm that manifests itself through Hinako's fears and anxieties, the teenager's journey is rooted in more than just angst.
—Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 23 Sep. 2025
There is natural beauty, too, with landscapes of Trento, Italy’s trees changing and decaying over time informing a lot of the textures.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 23 Sep. 2025
Three dead mice, two of them decaying, were also found in the basement, the report said.
—Jennifer Rodriguez, Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2025
Communities that end fluoridation will see more decaying teeth, according to Margherita Fontana, a professor at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry.
—Anna Clark, ProPublica, 18 Sep. 2025
At various points along that decaying value chain, Carr has a lot of power.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for decaying
Noun
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Mahama’s installations, which say something about societal deterioration, also dramatize the country’s inability to sustain robust funding in the arts or technology in its postindependence years.—
Edna Bonhomme,
Artforum,
1 Oct. 2025
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Indeed, September’s deterioration doesn’t signal the first time the indicator has entered recession territory—it’s been there since February 2025—but marks a further step away from a healthy outlook over a prolonged period of time.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
There’s concerts, there’s dinners, there’s brunches, there’s rotting time at home.—
Jennifer Liu,
CNBC,
25 Sep. 2025
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There, surrounding apple orchards and clumps of fallen, rotting fruit furnish the film with a rather literal visual metaphor, to which Etzler returns a bit too often.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
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What’s desperately needed, Sisti said, are comprehensive investments in mental health — Housing First programs, funding to build up a mental health care workforce, and an easily accessible and coordinated system of voluntary treatment that prevents people from deteriorating on the streets.—
Nathaniel Meyersohn,
CNN Money,
30 Sep. 2025
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In January, construction resumed to close a 100-foot gap and replace a deteriorating border fence in the southwestern area of Friendship Park, located between Playas de Tijuana and Imperial Beach.—
Alexandra Mendoza,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
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That combo typically signals bearish pressure is fading and a potential trend shift is forming.—
Nishant Pant,
CNBC,
30 Sep. 2025
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Glitter’s dusty shadow, fading into the lower part of the brow bone, brought out the moody hue on the lips.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
26 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The two manage to thrive together amid the decay and disorder of their East Hampton, New York mansion, making for an eerily ramshackle echo of the American Camelot.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
23 Sep. 2025
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Refusing sculpture’s decorum, Noah Purifoy turns neighborhood rubble into Johnsian abstraction that predicts his ramshackle desert sculptures.—
Jerry Saltz,
Vulture,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
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It is also naturally produced through the decay of other isotopes found in used nuclear fuel.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Sep. 2025
-
The two manage to thrive together amid the decay and disorder of their East Hampton, New York mansion, making for an eerily ramshackle echo of the American Camelot.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
23 Sep. 2025
Verb
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This prompts the straw to start decomposing, ensuring the bales won’t overheat and burn your plants later.—
Lauren Landers,
Better Homes & Gardens,
1 Oct. 2025
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Gates visited Koie’s mountainside studio in Gifu with Koie’s daughter, who shared that her father would be okay with the studio decomposing into the mountain.—
Elizabeth Cantrell,
Travel + Leisure,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Sworn declarations by detainees filed in federal court and obtained by the Herald on condition of anonymity allege negligent medical care and crumbling infrastructure at GEO’s facility in Karnes, Texas.—
Shirsho Dasgupta,
Miami Herald,
26 Sep. 2025
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Family Tree centers on three estranged siblings who reunite at Christmas to sell their crumbling childhood home only to discover that fixing the house might be the key to repairing their fractured family.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
25 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Decaying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/decaying. Accessed 5 Oct. 2025.
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