SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
degenerate
verb
To decline into a worse condition.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Become worse
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topRegress implies returning to an earlier or less developed state; degenerate emphasizes deterioration.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See degenerate in use
Without a clear agenda, the discussion began to degenerate into complaints.
A once-busy community workshop began to degenerate into a neglected storeroom as repairs stopped and scheduled sessions repeatedly disappeared from the calendar.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license