Synonyms of rots

rots

verb

present tense third-person singular of rot

1

as in deteriorates

to become worse or of less value

the house slowly fell into disrepair and rotted

Synonyms & Similar Words

• deteriorates
• crumbles
• descends
• worsens
• declines
• atrophies
• decays
• diminishes
• sinks
• degenerates
• devolves
• regresses
• weakens
• ebbs
• disintegrates
• decomposes
• retrogrades
• goes to seed
• sags
• degrades
• falls
• wanes
• recedes
• goes to pot
• putrefies
• dwindles
• sours
• corrupts
• downsizes
• reduces
• slips
• languishes
• debilitates
• abates
• undermines
• spoils
• wilts
• lessens
• droops
• molders
• lowers
• fails
• lags
• dilapidates
• breaks down
• de-escalates
• runs down
• wastes (away)
• flags

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• improves
• ameliorates
• enhances
• enriches
• intensifies
• strengthens
• develops
• progresses
• heightens
• fortifies
• meliorates
• upgrades
• proceeds
• betters
• advances
• marches

2

as in decomposes

to go through decomposition

rotting vegetation on the bank of the river

Synonyms & Similar Words

• decomposes
• disintegrates
• decays
• festers
• perishes
• corrupts
• deteriorates
• molds
• spoils
• putrefies
• crumbles
• descends
• falls apart
• rusts
• pollutes
• turns
• molders
• sours
• breaks down
• contaminates
• ferments
• goes to seed
• fouls
• taints
• defiles
• curdles
• mortifies
• sinks
• degenerates
• withers
• addles
• turns off
• declines
• dilapidates

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• grows
• ripens
• develops
• matures
• ages
• restores
• refreshes
• renews
• purifies
• cleanses
• improves
• integrates
• assembles
• composes
• ameliorates
• betters
• meliorates

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of rots

Parents used to tell their children that television rots the brain; now it’s considered a medium for legitimate art. — New York Times, 1 June 2026

Training plants to stay off the ground instead of trailing prevents many common fungal diseases, fruit spots, and rots. — Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 31 May 2026

When the seaweed rots, hydrogen sulfide gas is emitted, which smells like rotten eggs. — Doyle Rice, USA Today, 18 Apr. 2026

The big differences between the labs probably reflect the fact that, as Italians like to say, the fish rots from the head. — Caroline Mimbs Nyce, New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2026

Bacterial plant diseases include speck (a winter-surviving infection that attacks tomatoes), canker (which damages fruit trees including those producing apples and peaches), and blight (which rots melons, cucumbers, pumpkins, squash, peppers, tomatoes, eggplants, beans, and more). — New Atlas, 10 Jan. 2026

Critics have long warned that too much television rots your brain, but new evidence suggests at least some time in front of the tube may actually benefit your mental health. — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 7 Jan. 2026

If Britain continues down the path of criminalizing thought and prayer, the alliance risks being reduced to polite diplomacy while its moral core rots away. — Lois McLatchie Miller, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Aug. 2025