1
as in deteriorates
to become worse or of less value
the house slowly fell into disrepair and rotted
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in decomposes
to go through decomposition
rotting vegetation on the bank of the river
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of rots
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
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rots
Verb
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As her vision deteriorates, Penny turns to psychoanalysis not in hopes of reversing her condition, but to confront years of denial and silence.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
19 Feb. 2026
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Europe is tightening the net on Russian oil being shipped through its waters, squeezing Moscow’s ability to fund its war even as officials and business executives in Russia fear the window is narrowing to reach a peace deal before the economy deteriorates.—
Catherine Belton,
Washington Post,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The research team developed a route-planning system for Astrobee, the ISS’s robotic assistant, that leverages sequential convex programming—a method that decomposes complex trajectory planning into smaller, tractable steps while guaranteeing safety and feasibility.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Dec. 2025
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Shilajit is a mineral-rich resin that forms over centuries as plant material slowly decomposes under heat and pressure within the rocks of the Himalayan Mountains.—
Lindsay Curtis,
Verywell Health,
27 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Loyalty, betrayal, illness and war all bear down on the group as the old order crumbles around them.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
25 Feb. 2026
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The song was inspired by surviving a toxic relationship, and then finding a true-hearted love that crumbles emotional walls.—
Jessica Nicholson,
Billboard,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
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If the American state disintegrates, future postmortems are unlikely to focus much on measles, or on rotavirus vaccination rates.—
Vann R. Newkirk II,
The Atlantic,
9 Feb. 2026
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The debris – space rocks known as meteoroids – collides with Earth's atmosphere at high speed and disintegrates, creating fiery and colorful streaks in the sky, according to NASA.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
2 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Bear left for the Horseshoe Bend segment that descends quickly to the Agua Fria River.—
Roger Naylor,
AZCentral.com,
20 Feb. 2026
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As a small rural settlement is swiftly and ruthlessly stripped bare by the twin plagues of a diphtheria epidemic and spreading wildfires, the film eventually descends into a near-literal hellscape, though even when pandemonium takes over on screen, Van Dusen’s formal control never wavers.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Grief gets layered on top of grief and secrets stack sky high as suburban normalcy decays into something at once alarmingly unstable and comfortingly funny.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
19 Dec. 2025
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This famously happens when a quantum object is measured, but in this case, the mystery crops up when the top quark decays into lighter particles.—
Shalma Wegsman,
Quanta Magazine,
25 Nov. 2025
Verb
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While drought impacts water utilities in the Western states more directly, saltwater from coastal flooding worsens groundwater quality, and extreme cold can wear on pipes.—
Charlotte Slovin,
ABC News,
25 Feb. 2026
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The presenters discussed how periodontitis, a severe form of gum disease that worsens with age, affects the bone and tissues supporting the teeth.—
Angelica Stabile,
FOXNews.com,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Badgett added that vitamin D production may also decrease as kidney function declines with age, especially in older adults with chronic kidney disease.—
Maggie O'Neill,
Verywell Health,
23 Feb. 2026
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The estrogen hormone naturally declines with age and when levels drop during menopause, symptoms can surge.—
Jacqueline Howard,
CNN Money,
23 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rots.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rots. Accessed 1 Mar. 2026.
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