1
as in weak
having lost forcefulness, courage, or spirit
a degenerate society in which people had no sense of being citizens, only consumers
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2
as in corrupt
having or showing lowered moral character or standards
a movie about a gang of degenerate drug dealers
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as in pervert
a person who has sunk below the normal moral standard
a degenerate who is uninterested in anything but his own gratification
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as in to deteriorate
to become worse or of less value
over the years the community-minded organization degenerated into a club for loafers
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of degenerate
Lennard J. Davis, The Conversation, 13 Aug. 2024
Full of legitimately funny, or maybe, just shocking moments when Drake calls Kendrick’s pro-Blackness a sham and Kendrick calls Drake a degenerate deadbeat.
—Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork, 6 May 2024
Patrick Frater, Variety, 15 Apr. 2024
When every game gets presented as a point spread, and when every shot becomes merely an input in a degenerate’s parlay math, the game feels cheapened.
—Jay Caspian Kang, The New Yorker, 29 Mar. 2024
Rob Tanner, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025
And as our world degenerates around us into pixels, Martel maintains that one of our oldest and most human ways of knowing might also be our best hope of negotiating the present moment without being destroyed by it.
—Donna Tartt, Harper's Magazine, 2 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for degenerate
Adjective
The result is a book laden with put-downs of the English working class, who are cast in eugenicist terms as a degenerate race.
—Lennard J. Davis, The Conversation, 13 Aug. 2024
Full of legitimately funny, or maybe, just shocking moments when Drake calls Kendrick’s pro-Blackness a sham and Kendrick calls Drake a degenerate deadbeat.
—Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork, 6 May 2024
Noun
When valuable treasure is discovered off the coast of Korea, the country’s biggest degenerates come crawling out of the woodwork in the hope of striking it big.
—Patrick Frater, Variety, 15 Apr. 2024
When every game gets presented as a point spread, and when every shot becomes merely an input in a degenerate’s parlay math, the game feels cheapened.
—Jay Caspian Kang, The New Yorker, 29 Mar. 2024
Verb
This latest performance degenerated into a litany of basic defensive errors, as illustrated by all three of Brentford’s first-half goals.
—Rob Tanner, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025
And as our world degenerates around us into pixels, Martel maintains that one of our oldest and most human ways of knowing might also be our best hope of negotiating the present moment without being destroyed by it.
—Donna Tartt, Harper's Magazine, 2 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for degenerate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for degenerate
Adjective
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By late this evening, the winds will be significantly weaker.—
David Faris,
Newsweek,
27 Feb. 2025
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Salesforce shares fell in extended trading Wednesday on mixed quarterly results and weak guidance.—
Kevin Stankiewicz,
CNBC,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The scene in which Anderson single-handedly faces down both the corrupt deputy and the Klan’s most murderous henchman is a master class in range.—
Mary McNamara,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Mar. 2025
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Schwarz sees the blackout as a way for Americans to use their economic might in the form of their purchasing power to fight corporate greed and corrupt politicians.—
Anne Marie Lee,
CBS News,
28 Feb. 2025
Noun
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The days of pandering to perverts and woke PFCs are over.—
Josh Hammer,
Newsweek,
16 Feb. 2025
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Another of the girls called Essex a pervert, which prompted their mother to ask more questions.—
Keri Blakinger,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Read: The chaos in higher ed is only getting started The situation could deteriorate if current doctoral students start jumping ship.—
Ian Bogost,
The Atlantic,
27 Feb. 2025
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So organs deteriorate while doctor after doctor rejects them.—
Brian M. Rosenthal,
New York Times,
26 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Tragically, the Chesapeake remains significantly degraded and its overall water quality has improved only marginally after 41 years.—
Gerald Winegrad,
Baltimore Sun,
10 Feb. 2025
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Against the backdrop of a degraded web, the improbable success of a volunteer-run website attempting to gather all the world’s knowledge is something to celebrate, not destroy.—
Lila Shroff,
The Atlantic,
5 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Zelenskyy arrived in the U.K. on Saturday, straight from his visit to Washington, D.C., in which an Oval Office meeting with Trump and Vice President JD Vance descended into an open argument in front of gathered reporters.—
David Brennan,
ABC News,
2 Mar. 2025
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Meanwhile, followers are descending on Rome as the Vatican is marking its Holy Year and questions remain over how the pontiff will lead the church over the Easter period.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
1 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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With water, syrupy raisin and date notes comes forward in a big way, but an unexpected cotton candy sweetness keeps the nose from coming off as too rich and decadent.—
Chris Perugini,
Forbes,
6 Mar. 2025
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Add a coordinating duvet cover to bring decadent, old-world energy to even the most modern and minimal of bedrooms.—
Shoko Wanger,
Architectural Digest,
5 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Measles is an infection that can make even healthy children very sick.—
Brenda Goodman and Neha Mukherjee,
CNN,
6 Mar. 2025
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Less than 10 minutes later, at that same rally, gunfire rang out and a sick and deranged assassin unloaded eight bullets from his sniper’s perch into a crowd of many thousands of people.—
TIME Staff,
TIME,
5 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Degenerate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/degenerate. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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