dilapidating

present participle of dilapidate

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dilapidating
Verb
  • Scott’s face, in this shot, is a whole novel, disintegrating into tears before being shored up again, eventually rearranged into something resembling a welcoming smile that teeters on the edge of collapse.
    Alison Willmore, Vulture, 15 Sep. 2026
  • The 110-floor south tower, struck shortly after the north tower by another plane, was disintegrating.
    Diane Herbst, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Fifteen months later, 56 decomposing bodies were found at their South Chicago Chapel.
    Susana Mendoza, Chicago Tribune, 8 Sep. 2026
  • As excavations for the foundation got underway, bones and decomposing bodies were found, releasing a horrid odor and spreading yellow fever across the island.
    Victoria Davies, Rolling Stone, 31 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Anna Anosowicz’s highly resourceful production design makes excellent use of existing midcentury brutalist architecture and far more ancient, enduring structures, all moldering under superficially futuristic window-dressing.
    Guy Lodge, Variety, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Developer John Dewberry is responsible for the site, and has a reputation for leaving half-finished, moldering construction projects in his wake.
    AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 15 July 2026
Verb
  • In 1963, Gloria Steinem went undercover for a journalism assignment as a Playboy bunny, exposing degrading working conditions that forced policy changes.
    Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2026
  • While some look at this aesthetic as idealizing a time where women had fewer rights and independence, many trad wives do not think their roles are degrading.
    Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2026
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
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
Verb
  • Seemingly, the only thing that could slow down the automobile takeover was diminishing fuel supplies, fear of which had become a fixation of American oil companies and government officials after the Armistice.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Having already weathered so many attacks aimed at diminishing its power, the remaining Iranian leadership, which learned to tolerate hardship in the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s, is unlikely to be cowed by further aggression.
    JAMES F. JEFFREY, Foreign Affairs, 3 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • 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
  • Gadgets with screens of any size have long been allegedly melting, rotting, and/or corrupting the brains of youths for decades.
    Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 10 Sep. 2026
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Dilapidating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dilapidating. Accessed 18 Sep. 2026.

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