1
as in weak
having lost forcefulness, courage, or spirit
a degenerate society in which people had no sense of being citizens, only consumers
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2
as in corrupt
having or showing lowered moral character or standards
a movie about a gang of degenerate drug dealers
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in pervert
a person who has sunk below the normal moral standard
a degenerate who is uninterested in anything but his own gratification
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to deteriorate
to become worse or of less value
over the years the community-minded organization degenerated into a club for loafers
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of degenerate
Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
Ammon did appear tempted to talk the walk in Portland, to become the Mormon cowboy philosopher king wandering a degenerate realm of an ailing Republic, but by now time was in extremely short supply.
—Matt Thompson, SPIN, 5 Nov. 2024
Boris Fishman, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2025
On The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, these now-geriatric degenerates will duke it out for the only prize worth fighting for: making their kids proud.
—Emma Sharpe, Vulture, 14 Aug. 2024
Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
An outdoorsy child, Bobo understands the world by observing the adults around her, particularly her mercurial mother, Nicola (Davidtz), whose feelings of entitlement over the land degenerate into racist mania.
—Natalia Winkelman, New York Times, 10 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for degenerate
Adjective
There was alarm at the prospect of hundreds of thousands of soldiers returning to the U.S. with such degenerate experience under their belts, and presumably spreading these habits among hitherto innocent American wives.
—Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
Ammon did appear tempted to talk the walk in Portland, to become the Mormon cowboy philosopher king wandering a degenerate realm of an ailing Republic, but by now time was in extremely short supply.
—Matt Thompson, SPIN, 5 Nov. 2024
Noun
At another point, a surface-to-air missile takes out a passenger airliner, something that really happened — but the attack is as purposeless here as the tragic original event, other than to remind us that Valet, who surveys the wreckage for valuables, is a degenerate.
—Boris Fishman, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2025
On The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, these now-geriatric degenerates will duke it out for the only prize worth fighting for: making their kids proud.
—Emma Sharpe, Vulture, 14 Aug. 2024
Verb
Gunther cut a short-but-sweet promo, calling Punk’s fans degenerates and vowing to retain at SummerSlam.
WWE Raw Opening Segment: B-
Sheamus Def.
—Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
An outdoorsy child, Bobo understands the world by observing the adults around her, particularly her mercurial mother, Nicola (Davidtz), whose feelings of entitlement over the land degenerate into racist mania.
—Natalia Winkelman, New York Times, 10 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for degenerate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for degenerate
Adjective
-
The economy has withstood weak role creation precisely because the pool of applicants is shrinking.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
20 Oct. 2025
-
The defensive line took advantage of a weak Auburn O-line, sacking Arnold five times.—
Maddie Hartley,
Kansas City Star,
19 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
By inviting armed soldiers into our streets, the Governor has sold out our sovereignty to a corrupt politician looking to distract you from the Epstein Files, rising prices at the grocery store, and more Texans than ever unable to realize the dream of homeownership.—
Jenna Sundel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Oct. 2025
-
MacCallum noted that Mamdani had apologized to two dozen members of the NYPD, having previously referred to them as racist, wicked and corrupt.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Boiled down to a thoughtless pervert by the public, Six became one.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
21 Aug. 2025
-
What follows is a floor-by-floor descent into madness as Bobby battles bloodthirsty perverts, demonic flash mobs, and hallucinogenic suburban nightmares, all while trying to figure out if he’s meant to be the hero… or just the last guy standing.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
14 July 2025
Verb
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Kabul wants to hedge against its deteriorating relationship with its former patron Islamabad, which accuses the Taliban of harboring a separate but allied group that has carried out deadly attacks inside Pakistan.—
Happymon Jacob,
Time,
16 Oct. 2025
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Those delaminations deteriorated between dive 80 and dive 88, its final dive, resulting in a local buckling failure that led to the implosion.—
Michael Dorgan,
FOXNews.com,
16 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Of the 20 dead cats, eight were too decayed for a necropsy exam, which determines the cause of death of a dead animal and any associated diseases or injuries.—
Marina Johnson,
Louisville Courier Journal,
7 Aug. 2025
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The breakthrough came when researchers focused on coelomic fluid, the internal liquid surrounding the sea stars’ organs, rather than tissue from decayed specimens.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
4 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Lattice’s resilient mesh network ensures that EagleEye remains functional in degraded or jammed environments.—
Kapil Kajal,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Oct. 2025
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Here, settler colonialism is understood as a form of environmental injustice, where pollution and degraded landscapes diminish Indigenous quality of life and ability to be in right relationship with the environment.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
11 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Its crumbling buildings swallowed by greenery are starkly beautiful and deeply eerie, even more so as the cooler seasons creep in and sea mists descend.—
Maureen O'Hare,
CNN Money,
18 Oct. 2025
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With sunflower sea stars suddenly all but gone from their home range, sea urchin numbers exploded, and the hungry urchin hordes descended upon kelp forests.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
17 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Imagine crumbling a slice into a glass of frothed milk and espresso, or layering it with a scoop of ice cream for a decadent twist; the possibilities are endless.—
Elizabeth Fogarty,
Better Homes & Gardens,
17 Oct. 2025
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Adding a milk frother to your coffee accessories arsenal is the difference between a standard cup of coffee and something decadent.—
Yelena Moroz Alpert,
Architectural Digest,
15 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Degenerate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/degenerate. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.
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