Adjacent Words

Decay definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

DECA'Y, v.i. [Fr. dechoir, from L. de and cado, to fall, or decedo.]
1. To pass gradually from a sound, prosperous, or perfect state, to a less perfect state, or towards destruction; to fail; to decline; to be gradually impaired. Our bodies decay in old age; a tree decays; buildings decay; fortunes decay.
2. To become weaker; to fail; as, our strength decays, or hopes decay.
DECA'Y, v.t. To cause to fail; to impair; to bring to a worse state.
Infirmity, that decays the wise, doth ever make better the fool.
DECA'Y, n.
1. Gradual failure of health, strength, soundness, prosperity, or any species of excellence or perfection; decline to a worse or less perfect state; tendency towards dissolution or extinction; a state of depravation or diminution. Old men feel the decay of the body. We perceive the decay of the faculties in age. We lament the decay of virtue and patriotism in the state. The northern nations invaded the Roman Empire, when in a state of decay.
2. Declension from prosperity; decline of fortune.
If thy brother be waxen poor, and fallen in decay. Leviticus 25.
3. Cause of decay.
He that plots to be the only figure among ciphers, is the decay of the whole age.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the process of gradually becoming inferior
2: a gradual decrease; as of stored charge or current [syn: decay, decline]
3: the organic phenomenon of rotting [syn: decay, decomposition]
4: an inferior state resulting from the process of decaying; "the corpse was in an advanced state of decay"; "the house had fallen into a serious state of decay and disrepair"
5: the spontaneous disintegration of a radioactive substance along with the emission of ionizing radiation [syn: decay, radioactive decay, disintegration] v
1: lose a stored charge, magnetic flux, or current; "the particles disintegrated during the nuclear fission process" [syn: disintegrate, decay, decompose]
2: fall into decay or ruin; "The unoccupied house started to decay" [syn: decay, crumble, dilapidate]
3: undergo decay or decomposition; "The body started to decay and needed to be cremated"

Merriam Webster's

I. verb Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French decaïr, from Late Latin decadere to fall, sink, from Latin de- + cadere to fall — more at chance Date: 15th century intransitive verb 1. to decline from a sound or prosperous condition 2. to decrease usually gradually in size, quantity, activity, or force 3. to fall into ruin 4. to decline in health, strength, or vigor 5. to undergo decomposition <decaying fruit> transitive verb 1. obsolete to cause to decay ; impair <infirmity that decays the wise — Shakespeare> 2. to destroy by decomposition • decayer noun Synonyms: decay, decompose, rot, putrefy, spoil mean to undergo destructive dissolution. decay implies a slow change from a state of soundness or perfection <a decaying mansion>. decompose stresses a breaking down by chemical change and when applied to organic matter a corruption <the strong odor of decomposing vegetation>. rot is a close synonym of decompose and often connotes foulness <fruit was left to rot in warehouses>. putrefy implies the rotting of animal matter and offensiveness to sight and smell <corpses putrefying on the battlefield>. spoil applies chiefly to the decomposition of foods <keep the ham from spoiling>. II. noun Date: 15th century 1. gradual decline in strength, soundness, or prosperity or in degree of excellence or perfection 2. a wasting or wearing away ; ruin 3. obsolete destruction, death 4. a. rot; specifically aerobic decomposition of proteins chiefly by bacteria b. the product of decay 5. a decline in health or vigor 6. decrease in quantity, activity, or force: as a. spontaneous decrease in the number of radioactive atoms in radioactive material b. spontaneous disintegration (as of an atom or a particle)

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v. 1 a intr. rot, decompose. b tr. cause to rot or decompose. 2 intr. & tr. decline or cause to decline in quality, power, wealth, energy, beauty, etc. 3 intr. Physics a (usu. foll. by to) (of a substance etc.) undergo change by radioactivity. b undergo a gradual decrease in magnitude of a physical quantity. --n. 1 a rotten or ruinous state; a process of wasting away. 2 decline in health, quality, etc. 3 Physics a change into another substance etc. by radioactivity. b a decrease in the magnitude of a physical quantity, esp. the intensity of radiation or amplitude of oscillation. 4 decayed tissue. Derivatives: decayable adj. Etymology: ME f. OF decair f. Rmc (as DE-, L cadere fall)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Decay De*cay", v. i. [imp. & p. p. Decayed; p. pr. & vb. n. Decaying.] [OF. decaeir, dechaer, decheoir, F. d['e]choir, to decline, fall, become less; L. de- + cadere to fall. See Chance.] To pass gradually from a sound, prosperous, or perfect state, to one of imperfection, adversity, or dissolution; to waste away; to decline; to fail; to become weak, corrupt, or disintegrated; to rot; to perish; as, a tree decays; fortunes decay; hopes decay. Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates and men decay. --Goldsmith.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Decay De*cay", v. t. 1. To cause to decay; to impair. [R.] Infirmity, that decays the wise. --Shak. 2. To destroy. [Obs.] --Shak.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Decay De*cay", n. 1. Gradual failure of health, strength, soundness, prosperity, or of any species of excellence or perfection; tendency toward dissolution or extinction; corruption; rottenness; decline; deterioration; as, the decay of the body; the decay of virtue; the decay of the Roman empire; a castle in decay. Perhaps my God, though he be far before, May turn, and take me by the hand, and more - May strengthen my decays. --Herbert. His [Johnson's] failure was not to be ascribed to intellectual decay. --Macaulay. Which has caused the decay of the consonants to follow somewhat different laws. --James Byrne. 2. Destruction; death. [Obs.] --Spenser. 3. Cause of decay. [R.] He that plots to be the only figure among ciphers, is the decay of the whole age. --Bacon. Syn: Decline; consumption. See Decline.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(decays, decaying, decayed) 1. When something such as a dead body, a dead plant, or a tooth decays, it is gradually destroyed by a natural process. The bodies buried in the fine ash slowly decayed... The ground was scattered with decaying leaves. = rot VERB: V, V-ing • Decay is also a noun. When not removed, plaque causes tooth decay and gum disease. N-UNCOUNT • decayed ...decayed teeth. = rotten ADJ 2. If something such as a society, system, or institution decays, it gradually becomes weaker or its condition gets worse. Popular cinema seems to have decayed... VERB: V • Decay is also a noun. There are problems of urban decay and gang violence.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

de-ka': Although this word is still in good use in both its literal sense, of the putrefaction of either animal or vegetable matter, and its derived sense, denoting any deterioration, decline or gradual failure, the Revised Version (British and American) has replaced it by other expressions in Le 25:35; Ec 10:18; Isa 44:26; Heb 8:13; in some of these cases with a gain in accuracy of translation. In Ne 4:10 (kashal, "to be feeble," "stumble") the Revised Version (British and American) retains "is decayed"; in Job 14:11 (charebh, "to be dried up") the American Standard Revised Version substitutes "wasteth," and in Joh 11:39 the American Standard Revised Version has "the body decayeth" instead of the more literal translation offensive to modern ears (ozei, "emits a smell").

F. K. Farr

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. n. 1. Decline, fail, deteriorate, wither, waste, perish, be impaired, waste away, fall into decay. 2. Rot, putrefy, be spoiled. II. n. Decline, decadence, declension, falling off, deterioration, degeneracy, caducity.

Moby Thesaurus

ablate, ablation, atomization, atomize, atrophy, biodegradability, biodegradation, break down, break up, breakup, canker, caries, carrion, catalysis, catalyst, collapse, come apart, consume, contaminate, corrode, corrosion, corrupt, corruption, crack up, crumble, crumble into dust, crumbling, curdle, dandruff, debilitate, decadence, decline, decompose, decomposition, decrease, defile, degenerate, degeneration, degradability, degradation, deteriorate, deterioration, dialysis, dilapidate, dilapidation, diminish, disintegrate, disintegration, disjoin, disjunction, disorganization, disorganize, dissociation, dissolution, dissolve, downfall, dry rot, dwindle, ebb, enfeeble, erode, erosion, excrement, fading, failing, fall into decay, fall to pieces, ferment, fester, filth, fission, foul matter, foulness, furfur, gangrene, go bad, go off, go to pieces, go to pot, go to seed, hydrolysis, hydrolyst, incoherence, mess, mildew, mold, molder, mortification, mortify, mould, moulder, muck, mucus, necrose, necrosis, obscenity, ordure, oxidation, oxidization, perish, photolysis, pollute, pus, putrefaction, putrefy, putresce, putrescence, putrid matter, putridity, putridness, rancidity, rancidness, rankle, rankness, ravages of time, resolution, rot, rottenness, rotting, ruin, rust, sap, scurf, scuz, slime, slough, smut, snot, sordes, sour, sphacelate, sphacelation, sphacelus, split, splitting, spoil, spoilage, suppurate, taint, thermolysis, tooth decay, turn, undermine, wane, waste away, wasting, weaken, weakening, wear, wear and tear, wear away, wither, work, wreck