DETERIORATE Synonyms: 128 Similar and Opposite Words

deteriorate

verb

di-ˈtir-ē-ə-ˌrāt

Definition of deteriorate

as in to worsen

to become worse or of less value the garden slowly deteriorated after months of neglect

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to degrade

to lower in character, dignity, or quality childish name-calling that merely deteriorates what should be a serious discussion on an important issue

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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 deteriorate The company’s financial position had been deteriorating for several years. — Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 18 Sep. 2026 One of the most notable pieces of information to emerge that week was that Clark’s standing at ESPN had deteriorated ahead of the network’s first Super Bowl broadcast in 2027. — Bobby Burack Outkick, FOXNews.com, 18 Sep. 2026 Its relationships with European and other foreign governments have deteriorated, and those divisions now complicate the international discussions over postwar arrangements in Gaza. — Nadia Schadlow, Foreign Affairs, 18 Sep. 2026 When Lizzie was just 2 years old, her mother’s health began to deteriorate. — Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for deteriorate

Recent Examples of Synonyms for deteriorate

Verb

Because of the pain from tooth damage, the may have upped their betel nut consumption, ultimately worsening the addiction.

— Devika Rao, TheWeek, 21 Sep. 2026
Holzmann said the worsening economic conditions are pushing the Kast administration to race against the clock to translate medium- and long-term initiatives into concrete actions that have a direct impact on citizens’ pockets.

— ABC News, ABC News, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of worsen

Verb

As industries increasingly operate equipment in extreme thermal and demanding environments, optical components must withstand conditions that can quickly degrade conventional materials.

— Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 17 Sep. 2026
When a critical resource of a larger system is categorized as interchangeable, the company triggers savings logic that, in pursuit of lower prices, degrades quality.

— Mindaugas Čaplinskas, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of degrade

Verb

The agency spokesperson says that the anechoic chamber hadn’t been upgraded since 1997 and that its microwave-absorbing foam spires were crumbling.

— Eric Niiler, Scientific American, 22 Sep. 2026
The planters are original to the stadium’s 1962 construction, and many had crumbled badly enough over the decades to need painstaking repair.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2026

Definition of crumble

Verb

People familiar with the deliberations said lawmakers worried the requirements would raise drug prices and weaken national security by revealing the precise locations where lifesaving medications are made.

— Naisha Roy, ProPublica, 18 Sep. 2026
Macron warned that the attacks would not go unanswered and accused Moscow of trying to intimidate Europeans into weakening their support for Ukraine.

— ABC News, ABC News, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of weaken

Verb

His attorney, Daniel Gerdts, declined to comment after the hearing.

— TIM SULLIVAN, Arkansas Online, 18 Sep. 2026
There are also discussions about an adjacent White House meeting with AI CEOs next week, which House Majority Leader Mike Johnson referenced, but a representative for the speaker declined to provide further details.

— Ashley Gold, semafor.com, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of decline

Verb

The title character and his fellow physicists spend much of their early years refusing to work for the Soviet military machine; building bombs would corrupt the purity and beauty of their science.

— Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 14 Sep. 2026
And by engaging with these powerful militaries, the group reinforced its self-image as a major regional player that was uniquely capable of liberating the Muslim world from corrupting American and Israeli influence.

— April Longley Alley, Foreign Affairs, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of corrupt

Verb

In July, the worst air quality since records began descended on Chicago in part due to smoke from wildfires in Canada.

— Mikayla Price, CBS News, 16 Sep. 2026
Nearly 500 federal, state and local officers descended on the sprawling plant, detaining 475 workers, mostly South Koreans.

— Hanna Park, CNN Money, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of descend

Verb

Theirs is the paramount love story here, which works well in some ways but less so in others, somehow diminishing the stakes of their respective longing for Edward Ferrars (George MacKay) and Willoughby (Frank Dillane).

— David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 21 Sep. 2026
But people have decided to use their savings and savings is diminishing.

— CBS News, CBS News, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of diminish

Browse Nearby Words

deterging

deteriorate

deteriorated

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Deteriorate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deteriorate. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of deteriorate

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

compendious

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?

Popular

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes