as in deteriorated
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Dissimilar Words
as in worsened
to become worse or of less value
over the years the community-minded organization degenerated into a club for loafers
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Recent Examples of degenerated
Wesley Alexander Hill,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2026
Last fall, a Krousty Sabaïdi giveaway promoted by popular French influencer Fares Salvatore, who has more than 868,000 followers on TikTok, degenerated into mayhem when the call-out attracted 3,000 teenagers.
—
Vivian Song,
CNN Money,
3 Apr. 2026
Murderous encounters dating to the Risdon Cove settlement eventually degenerated into the Black War (1804–30), a period of great physical conflict between the Aboriginal population and European settlers.
—
Britannica Editors,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
19 Mar. 2026
After a police operation in Rio de Janeiro in October degenerated into a chaotic shootout, leading to more than 120 deaths, Brazilian civil society groups reacted in horror.
—
Brian Winter,
Foreign Affairs,
16 Dec. 2025
Our national political and cultural discourse, especially online, has degenerated into a permanent fever dream.
—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Dec. 2025
The bear bowled Propst over backward, and the encounter degenerated into lopsided hand-to-fang combat.
—
John McCoy,
Outdoor Life,
12 Nov. 2025
Verb
Macron’s highest aspirations to, as a modern Talleyrand, inject himself and solve global issues such as Ukraine, Africa’s Sahel, Syria, Lebanon, or Iran have fallen short, degenerated into petty feuds, or backfired.
—
Wesley Alexander Hill,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2026
Last fall, a Krousty Sabaïdi giveaway promoted by popular French influencer Fares Salvatore, who has more than 868,000 followers on TikTok, degenerated into mayhem when the call-out attracted 3,000 teenagers.
—
Vivian Song,
CNN Money,
3 Apr. 2026
Murderous encounters dating to the Risdon Cove settlement eventually degenerated into the Black War (1804–30), a period of great physical conflict between the Aboriginal population and European settlers.
—
Britannica Editors,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
19 Mar. 2026
After a police operation in Rio de Janeiro in October degenerated into a chaotic shootout, leading to more than 120 deaths, Brazilian civil society groups reacted in horror.
—
Brian Winter,
Foreign Affairs,
16 Dec. 2025
Our national political and cultural discourse, especially online, has degenerated into a permanent fever dream.
—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Dec. 2025
The bear bowled Propst over backward, and the encounter degenerated into lopsided hand-to-fang combat.
—
John McCoy,
Outdoor Life,
12 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for degenerated
Adjective
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According to the officer, the decision to classify Sands' death as such was the result of the deteriorated condition of his body.
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Crews will spend several days rebuilding and paving each section before moving on to the next, according to a press release, and the project will remove deteriorated pavement before the application of new asphalt.
Verb
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Rising global energy prices have worsened the situation.
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Under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, insecurity has worsened as the militants have started operating in the southern region.
Adjective
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Pumps and lift systems can easily become corroded.
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But one look at the crumbling, corroded metal shield covering the base left Jacobson thinking, at the very least, that should have been replaced over the years.
Verb
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The Continental Army went into the battle with a two-to-one advantage in numbers, but when most of the American militia crumbled in the face of a British bayonet charge, Pumphrey's unit was outnumbered, Wise says.
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The fronts of two rowhomes crumbled to the ground Monday night as severe weather hit the Delaware Valley.
Adjective
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Brushing with tap water is one of the easiest ways to swallow contaminated water without realizing it.
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No method is completely foolproof, so avoiding contaminated water remains the safest strategy.
Verb
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America's favorite investment has changed over time In 2008, as the Great Recession descended, Americans picked the humble savings account (and the certificate of deposit) as their favorite long-term investment in Gallup polls.
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Then something unusual happened as Valdez descended in the boom lift with Pinky’s remains.
Adjective
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If one neighborhood is highly polluted but nearby communities aren’t, county-level averages would show an overall low level of pollution – even though the more detailed information would reveal a major problem to be addressed in one particular area.
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Her inner light reminds him of the stars he’s seen with his own eyes, above the polluted atmosphere of Earth.
Verb
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District officials declined to provide the correspondence with Carvalho, instead assigning the request to the district’s Public Records Act unit, where some requests for records have taken years to resolve.
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The public prosecutor’s office declined to comment on the case when reached by CNN.
Cite this Entry
“Degenerated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/degenerated. Accessed 1 Jul. 2026.
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