DEGENERATING Synonyms: 66 Similar and Opposite Words

degenerating

verb

present participle of degenerate

as in deteriorating

to become worse or of less value over the years the community-minded organization degenerated into a club for loafers

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of degenerating McFarland found the items inside a degenerating family trunk. — Gabrielle Rockson, PEOPLE, 21 Apr. 2026 But in general, any organic media is going to start degenerating over time, and the pH is going to be higher. — Ryan Conner, Dallas Morning News, 1 Apr. 2026 Scientists have hailed the benefits of exercising early in life to lower the risk of your brain degenerating later. — Kristen Rogers, CNN Money, 29 Nov. 2025 In the Pacific, meteorologists are watching to see how much rain the degenerating Tropical Storm Mario could carry into the San Diego region. — Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 16 Sep. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for degenerating

Verb

The latest contingent is arriving as Haiti confronts a deteriorating security and humanitarian environment and struggles to organize its first general elections in more than a decade.

— Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 19 Sep. 2026
The company’s financial position had been deteriorating for several years.

— Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of deteriorating

Verb

Transportation officials posted a video showing severe erosion jeopardizing the train tracks used by Metrolink in San Clemente, with strong ocean waves crashing on the tracks and sediment crumbling onto the rocks below.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2026
Vigiano was assigned to NYPD Emergency Services Unit Truck 2 on 9/11 and was one of the first to rush into the crumbling World Trade Center complex.

— Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of crumbling

Verb

This novel’s narrator is a dog who lives on a farm in a nameless country that is descending into war.

— The New Yorker, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026
United Airlines Flight 175, another Boeing 767 aircraft, which departed from Boston, was descending and heading for New York City.

— Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of descending

Verb

For some business owners, the impact extends beyond declining sales.

— Ivan Taylor, CBS News, 17 Sep. 2026
The number of people aged 100 or older in Japan surpassed a record 100,000 this year, the latest government figures show, underscoring the country's rapidly aging and declining population.

— ABC News, ABC News, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of declining

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degenerates

degenerating

degeneration

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“Degenerating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/degenerating. Accessed 21 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of degenerating

verb

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