dilapidate

verb

Definition of dilapidatenext
as in to putrefy

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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 dilapidate By the 1980s, much of downtown was moribund; buildings that once thrummed with commerce were dilapidated and vacant or underused. — Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2023 Only about 70 of the calvary camp’s original 700 buildings remain and are dilapidated ghostly shadows of their once important past. — Diane Bell, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 May 2023 The towers would replace a four-acre debris heap where the famed but dilapidated Deauville Beach Resort from the 1950s sat until courts ordered it to be imploded. — Mark Bisnow, Fortune, 27 Mar. 2023 Hamdok found that the legacy of 30 years of dictatorship meant that Sudan’s political and economic models were dilapidated. — Justin Lynch, CNN, 17 Apr. 2023 See All Example Sentences for dilapidate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dilapidate
  1. putrefy
  2. decompose
  3. disintegrate
  4. corrupt
  5. degrade
  6. diminish
  7. recede
  8. downsize
Verb
  • Because lose-lose situations are so endemic to the genre, a hint of relief can sometimes accompany the prospect of surrender to the putrefying mob.
    — Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 9 Aug. 2025
  • Fast-forward to now, and the scene has putrefied into a wasteland of the percussive undead.
    — Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 2 July 2025
Definition of putrefy
Verb
  • The Yolo County Central Landfill will build a new system that will convert methane from decomposing waste into renewable natural gas, the county announced Tuesday.
    — Daniel Lempres, Sacbee.com, 30 June 2026
  • The ocean becomes a creamy expanse splotched with brown mats of decomposing algae, according to photos shared by Abrams.
    — Bill Kearney, Sun Sentinel, 28 June 2026
Definition of decompose
Verb
  • That changed in April 2023 when unknowing construction workers unceremoniously removed a disintegrating Pinky from its eyrie.
    — Ryan Steven Green, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2026
  • The experiments have shown how a self-repair mechanism enables the spindle to stabilize itself under force and avoid disintegrating.
    — Jake Buehler, Quanta Magazine, 29 June 2026
Definition of disintegrate
Verb
  • Forgetting his bond with the land, Mariano awakens the Ch’iqmi, a dark force that corrupts his people.
    — Kevin Giraud, Variety, 25 June 2026
  • Lander has argued Goldman, the multimillionaire heir to the Levi jeans fortune, embodies establishment, corporate interests that corrupt the Democratic Party.
    — Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 23 June 2026
Definition of corrupt
Verb
  • When temperatures rise, heat can quietly degrade pantry staples, making refrigeration essential to preserve quality and flavor.
    — Anne Wolf, Martha Stewart, 1 July 2026
  • If leaders are not present and actively developing people, the system degrades—quietly at first, then all at once.
    — Brian Coyne, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of degrade
Verb
  • Give ample space to large vehicles - Trucks or buses can create a water spray that diminishes visibility.
    — NC Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 6 July 2026
  • The union said that unresolved complaints made against Hawk and existing climate issues have significantly diminished confidence among many educators.
    — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 6 July 2026
Definition of diminish
Verb
  • The fog rolls in, the crowds recede, and the calli feel wider and quieter.
    — Christopher Elliott, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
  • Yet, attention tends to recede quickly in the years between Olympics, and Tufte said rowing remains a niche sport with a small budget.
    — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 1 July 2026
Definition of recede
Verb
  • Finding signal in the noise Whether downsizing actually helps a company turn things around remains an open debate.
    — D. Brian Blank, The Conversation, 29 June 2026
  • First, people are downsizing, says Wendy Kuhn, senior kitchen and bath designer at Karr Bick.
    — Abby Wolner, Better Homes & Gardens, 24 June 2026
Definition of downsize

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Cite this Entry

“Dilapidate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dilapidate. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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