degeneracy

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /dɪˈdʒɛnɚəsi/ UK /dɪˈdʒɛnərəsi/ See IPA manual

noun

Meanings

1

noun
the state of having declined morally, physically, or in quality

The empire's later years were marked by luxury and degeneracy.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the state of having... depravity decadence corruption debauchery decline perversion deterioration

Opposites

virtue integrity improvement regeneration

Word family

Related forms degenerate degeneration generate genus

Etymology

From degenerate (from Latin degeneratus, from degenerare 'to depart from one's kind', from de- 'away from' + genus 'race, kind') plus the noun suffix -cy.

degenerare Latin genus Latin *ǵenh₁- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

# degeneracy

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** dɪˈdʒɛnɚəsi
**IPA (UK):** dɪˈdʒɛnərəsi

## Meanings
1. the state of having declined morally, physically, or in quality

## Examples
- The empire's later years were marked by luxury and degeneracy.

## Synonyms
- depravity
- decadence
- corruption
- debauchery
- decline
- perversion
- deterioration

## Antonyms
- virtue
- integrity
- improvement
- regeneration

## Related Forms
- degenerate
- degeneration
- generate
- genus

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: degenerare
- Root: genus
- Root: *ǵenh₁-

## Etymology
From degenerate (from Latin degeneratus, from degenerare 'to depart from one's kind', from de- 'away from' + genus 'race, kind') plus the noun suffix -cy.

## AI Etymology
Degeneracy comes from degenerate (from Latin degeneratus, from degenerare 'to depart from one's kind', from de- 'away from' + genus 'race, kind') plus the noun suffix -cy. The etymological trail includes Latin degenerare, Latin genus, and Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁-. As a noun, degeneracy names the state of having declined morally, physically, or in quality. The same family is visible in related forms such as degenerate, degeneration, generate, and genus. The analysis is partly morphological, with the modern form built from the elements named in the history.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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