as in degenerate
having lost forcefulness, courage, or spirit
he felt rather washed-up after this latest business failure
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 washed-up
Deborah sees Ava as entitled and self-righteous, Ava sees Deborah as washed-up and boring.
—
Los Angeles Times,
29 May 2026
Hacks season 5 Five years ago, Ava (Hannah Einbinder) struggled to accept her lot in life when she was hired to be washed-up comedian Deborah Vance's (Jean Smart) new writer.
—
Rebecca Aizin,
PEOPLE,
10 Apr. 2026
The film, about a group of revolutionaries who reunite to help one of their own — Bob Ferguson, a washed-up, paranoid stoner — rescue his daughter from their longtime enemy, has a lot to say about our fraught, divisive reality.
—
Lauren Huff,
Entertainment Weekly,
27 Sep. 2025
Last offseason, the Washington Capitals signed several players seen as washed-up or underachieving.
—
The Christian Science Monitor,
Christian Science Monitor,
7 Apr. 2025
Forget washed-up — Escola might not yet be a widely recognizable name, but the 37-year-old is on track to become one of the most original and influential voices in the alternative comedy scene.
—
Ct Jones,
Rolling Stone,
6 Feb. 2024
Los Angeles Times,
29 May 2026
Hacks season 5 Five years ago, Ava (Hannah Einbinder) struggled to accept her lot in life when she was hired to be washed-up comedian Deborah Vance's (Jean Smart) new writer.
—
Rebecca Aizin,
PEOPLE,
10 Apr. 2026
The film, about a group of revolutionaries who reunite to help one of their own — Bob Ferguson, a washed-up, paranoid stoner — rescue his daughter from their longtime enemy, has a lot to say about our fraught, divisive reality.
—
Lauren Huff,
Entertainment Weekly,
27 Sep. 2025
Last offseason, the Washington Capitals signed several players seen as washed-up or underachieving.
—
The Christian Science Monitor,
Christian Science Monitor,
7 Apr. 2025
Forget washed-up — Escola might not yet be a widely recognizable name, but the 37-year-old is on track to become one of the most original and influential voices in the alternative comedy scene.
—
Ct Jones,
Rolling Stone,
6 Feb. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for washed-up
Adjective
-
After delivery, the umbilical arteries constrict and degenerate.
-
As her life begins overlapping with the events of the film, she’s confronted with her own degenerate desires, as the Nazis would call them.
Adjective
-
Discard any that look dead or decayed.
-
The farm buildings on the property—long verandas, shearing sheds, and concrete kennels—are old and decayed, remnants from long before the group showed up.
Adjective
-
Depressed wages, a weak currency and hyperinflation have continued to make life difficult for ordinary Venezuelans, many of whom struggle to afford basic goods.
-
There, the Sox scored on a weak, off-line throw from shallow left fielder José Caballero.
Adjective
-
At its proudly overripe heart, the series is a gothic domestic soap—Lifetime themes gussied up in Southern finery.
-
But at the end of 2021, S&P profits already looked overripe.
Adjective
-
Even when degraded, enzymes have stable backbones that might be capable of catalyzing reactions, said Sudha Rajamani, an astrobiologist at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune who wasn’t involved in the study.
-
According to the company, QTT enables highly secure and resilient position, navigation, and timing (PNT) services, helping maintain accurate timing and synchronization even when traditional GPS and radio-frequency signals are unavailable, degraded, or intentionally jammed.
Adjective
-
Republicans have sought to cast him as an effete extremist.
-
Scarf critics accuse the accessory—and by extension, its wearers—of being effete or affected.
Adjective
-
BornToStandOut Drunk Lovers Eau de Parfum with Amber Probably the boldest and most decadent of the bunch, Drunk Lovers is a unisex option that takes a moodier turn with its earthy, woody profile.
-
Summer is the best time of year to make this decadent baked cheese appetizer, when Southern peaches are in their prime.
Cite this Entry
“Washed-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/washed-up. Accessed 28 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
