rotting 1 of 3

adjective

as in rotted

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rotting

2 of 3

noun

as in decay

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rotting

3 of 3

verb

present participle of rot
1
as in deteriorating
to become worse or of less value the house slowly fell into disrepair and rotted

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in decomposing
to go through decomposition rotting vegetation on the bank of the river

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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 rotting
Verb
City leaders have accused Lineage, whose warehouse in Boyle Heights was destroyed by fire, of blowing past the city’s 45-day deadline for removing millions of pounds of rotting food from its property. — Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2026 The pot should have several drainage holes to keep the roots from rotting. — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 14 Aug. 2026 The Gordon Road Stand, the oldest in the EFL and barely 30 yards wide, was still standing, albeit slowly rotting away after being closed in the wake of the Bradford City fire disaster that claimed 56 lives in 1985. — Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 13 Aug. 2026 And by the time a pair of West Village hippies drove up here in 1966, the cider mill’s floors were rotting and its windows were knocked out. — Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 13 Aug. 2026 Fruit flies may also use your trash can and compost bin as a breeding ground, especially when there’s rotting food inside. — Emma Jacobson, Bon Appetit Magazine, 13 Aug. 2026 Today, the town’s Victorian grandeur is rotting and crumbling away, its cast-iron piers corroded by sea salt. — George Francis Lee, New Yorker, 12 Aug. 2026 The smell of rotting food follows Juan Canil like a second shadow. — Celina Tebor, CNN Money, 8 Aug. 2026 Inspectors found seven dead roaches under kitchen equipment and also noted accumulations of mold and rotting food debris, according to the report. — Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rotting
  1. rotted
  2. decay
  3. deteriorating
  4. decomposing
  5. decaying
  6. crumbling
  7. worsening
  8. disintegrating
Adjective
  • Inspect fences and perform any repairs or maintenance, such as reinforcing posts or replacing rotted sections.
    — BestReviews, Chicago Tribune, 8 June 2026
  • Many grapes become too rotted and are left to wither away.
    — John Mariani, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
Definition of rotted
Noun
  • By tracking these positrons, researchers could determine their vertical decay angles and search for the tiny signal expected from an EDM.
    — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Many lines of research align with the theory that aging is a direct result of decay — the inevitable degradation of molecules (including proteins or DNA), organelles, cells, or whole organs — from external assault or inexorable breakdown.
    — Ingrid Wickelgren, Quanta Magazine, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of decay
Verb
  • Families of some of the 5,000 sailors and Marines aboard the Lincoln describe low morale and deteriorating conditions.
    — Alexander Smith, NBC news, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Concerns about mental health deteriorating on these types of deployments are well-founded.
    — Christopher Buchanan, Los Angeles Times, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of deteriorating
Verb
  • Other microbes recycle nutrients by decomposing dead plants and animals, fix atmospheric nitrogen into forms that plants can use, and form essential partnerships with roots, insects, and other organisms.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Many unanswered questions remain after 56 decomposing bodies were found inside a Chicago funeral home last week.
    — Megan De Mar, CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of decomposing
Adjective
  • The district also could be in for other major changes in the coming years, including the opening of a few new schools to replace multiple decaying, underenrolled schools.
    — Scott Travis, Miami Herald, 15 May 2026
Definition of decaying
Noun
  • Putin and his Kremlin oligarchs have confidently anticipated a crumbling of Western assistance for Ukraine.
    — Ihor N. Stelmach, Hartford Courant, 19 July 2026
  • There is so much discussion about the demise of literacy and the crumbling of the American education system.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 13 July 2026
Definition of crumbling
Verb
  • The Washington’s deployment comes as reports have emerged in recent months recounting worsening living conditions, mental health concerns, and supply shortages on board the Lincoln.
    — Connor Greene, Time, 14 Aug. 2026
  • The exploration licenses were granted before Greenland stopped issuing new licenses in 2021, citing the worsening climate crisis.
    — Sam Meredith, CNBC, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of worsening
Verb
  • Teams must build enough psychological trust to disagree without disintegrating.
    — Bryan Robinson, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Others rot in the California sun, disintegrating into bony fragments.
    — Jack Flemming, Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026
Definition of disintegrating

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rotters
rotting
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Cite this Entry

“Rotting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rotting. Accessed 17 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of rotting for Spanish Speakers

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