decay
/diˈkeɪ/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.83 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
Rot; any processes or result of organic matter being gradually decomposed, especially by microbial action.
Uncountable
verb
To deteriorate, to get worse, to lose strength or health, to decline in quality.
Intransitive verb
Example Sentences
- "tooth decay/dental decay—wood-decay fungi—bacterial decay—photochemical decay"
- "I fancied at first the stuff was paraffin wax, and smashed the jar accordingly. But the odor of camphor was unmistakable. It struck me as singularly odd, that among the universal decay, this volatile substance had chanced to survive, perhaps through many thousand years."
- "He spent himself, the labour of his axe, And leave it there far from a useful fireplace To warm the frozen swamp as best it could With the slow smokeless burning of decay."
- "civic and moral decay—systemic decay—fall into decay—urban decay—arrested decay—memory decay"
- "Although the best room of the inn, it had the melancholy aspect of grandeur in decay, and was much too vast for comfort."
- "alpha decay—gamma decay—fission decay—decay chain"
Etymology
From Middle English decaien (“to decrease, diminish”) and decai (“deterioration, decline in value”), from Anglo-Norman decaeir (“to fall away, decay, decline”), from Vulgar Latin *dēcadere, etymologically restored form of Latin dēcidere (“to fall down, to fail, sink or perish”), from de- (“of, from, away, down”) + cadere (“to fall”). Compare decadent and decadence.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *ḱh₂d-, decaien, decheoir, dēcidō
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /diˈkeɪ/
- British English: /dɪˈkeɪ/
Usage
Inflected Forms
Derived Forms
Phrases
Frequently Paired Words
Synonyms
nuclear decay—atomic decay
fester
decomposition
decline
radioactive decay
disintegration
crumble
dilapidate