decaying
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de·cay
(dĭ-kā′)v. de·cayed, de·cay·ing, de·cays
v.intr.
1. Biology To break down into component parts; rot.
2. Physics To disintegrate in a process of radioactive decay or particle decay.
3. Electronics To decrease gradually in magnitude. Used of voltage or current.
4. Aerospace To decrease in orbit. Used of an artificial satellite.
5. To fall into ruin: a civilization that had begun to decay.
6. To decline in health or vigor; waste away.
7. To decline from a state of normality, excellence, or prosperity; deteriorate.
v.tr.
To cause to decay.
n.
1.
a. The destruction or decomposition of organic matter as a result of bacterial or fungal action; rot.
b. Rotted matter.
2. Physics
a. See radioactive decay.
b. See particle decay.
3. Aerospace The decrease in orbital altitude of an artificial satellite as a result of conditions such as atmospheric drag.
4. A gradual deterioration to an inferior state: tooth decay; urban decay.
5. A falling into ruin.
[Middle English decayen, from Old French decair, from Vulgar Latin *dēcadere : Latin dē-, de- + Latin cadere, to fall; see kad- in Indo-European roots.]
de·cay′er n.
Synonyms: decay, rot, decompose, putrefy, spoil, molder, disintegrate
These verbs refer to the gradual process by which something breaks down or falls apart as a result of natural causes. Decay has wide application but often suggests partial deterioration short of complete destruction: "A decaying dam is an accident waiting to happen" (George Black).
Rot and decompose are closely synonymous with decay, but rot often emphasizes loss of structural integrity while decompose generally stresses breaking down into chemical components: The rotting timbers gave way under the added weight. When grass clippings decompose, they return nutrients to the soil.
Putrefy denotes an advanced stage of organic breakdown that is offensive to the senses: "Large numbers of cows and oxen ... were left to putrefy on mud flats after the floods receded, attracting rats" (John F. Burns).
Spoil usually refers to the process by which perishable substances become unfit for use or consumption: Fish will spoil quickly if not refrigerated.
To molder is to crumble to dust: The shawl had moldered away in the trunk.
Disintegrate refers to the reduction of something to particles, fragments, or constituent elements: The sandstone façade had disintegrated from exposure to wind and rain.
These verbs refer to the gradual process by which something breaks down or falls apart as a result of natural causes. Decay has wide application but often suggests partial deterioration short of complete destruction: "A decaying dam is an accident waiting to happen" (George Black).
Rot and decompose are closely synonymous with decay, but rot often emphasizes loss of structural integrity while decompose generally stresses breaking down into chemical components: The rotting timbers gave way under the added weight. When grass clippings decompose, they return nutrients to the soil.
Putrefy denotes an advanced stage of organic breakdown that is offensive to the senses: "Large numbers of cows and oxen ... were left to putrefy on mud flats after the floods receded, attracting rats" (John F. Burns).
Spoil usually refers to the process by which perishable substances become unfit for use or consumption: Fish will spoil quickly if not refrigerated.
To molder is to crumble to dust: The shawl had moldered away in the trunk.
Disintegrate refers to the reduction of something to particles, fragments, or constituent elements: The sandstone façade had disintegrated from exposure to wind and rain.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
decaying
(dɪˈkeɪɪŋ)adj
1. rotting as a result of bacterial, fungal, or chemical action; decomposing
2. declining gradually in health, prosperity, excellence, etc
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
Decaying
degeneration as the result of disuse, malnutrition, etc.
disposition to disintegrate as the result of natural processes. — biodegradable, adj.
the condition of being perishable. — caducous, adj.
the condition of being decayed or carious, especially with regard to teeth.
the destructive process of metabolism in which living matter is turned into waste. — catabolic, adj.
a breaking down; disruption. — cataclasmic, n.
Rare. the process of decay or deterioration. See also change.
degeneration of cells or tissues. — cataplastic, adj.
the stage of decline in organic development.
the degeneration of cells. — cytolytic, adj.
the state or quality of being susceptible to breakdown or decomposition. — degradable, adj.
the belief that the universe is gradually breaking down. See also meliorism.
the condition of being fugacious or transitory; evanescence. — fugacious, adj.
the branch of biology that studies aging and its phenomena. Also gereology. — geratologic, geratologous, adj.
the disintegration or dissolution of organic tissues. — histolytic, adj.
the process of coming apart, especially falling into ruin or decay.
the decomposition of cells by antibodies called lysins.
atrophy or wasting away of the muscles.
the death or decay of body tissue, the result of loss of blood supply or trauma. — necrotic, adj.
depreciation, loss, or diminution in value, quality, etc.
the breakdown of matter or materials under the influence of light. — photolytic, adj.
1. the state or process of rotting or putrefying.
2. rotting or putrefying matter. — putrescent, adj.
2. rotting or putrefying matter. — putrescent, adj.
a gradual wasting away of the body or of any organ or part of the body.
the wasting of the body, as in consumption. — syntectic, syntectical, adj.
1. the process of emaciation or wasting of the body.
2. the condition of being wasted or in decay, especially as a gradual process. — tabescent, adj.
2. the condition of being wasted or in decay, especially as a gradual process. — tabescent, adj.
the state of being affected by tabes, i.e., gradual wasting or decay.
-Ologies & -Isms. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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decaying
adjective
1. rotting, deteriorating, disintegrating, crumbling, perishing, wasting away, wearing away, putrefying, gangrenous, putrefacient the smell of decaying bodies is all-pervasive
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
decaying
adjectiveShowing signs of wear and tear or neglect:
bedraggled, broken-down, decrepit, dilapidated, dingy, down-at-heel, faded, mangy, rundown, scrubby, scruffy, seedy, shabby, shoddy, sleazy, tattered, tatty, threadbare.
Informal: tacky.
Slang: ratty.
Idioms: all the worse for wear, gone to pot, past cure.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
decaying
[dɪˈkeɪɪŋ] ADJ1. [food] → podrido, en estado de descomposición; [vegetation] → podrido; [flesh] → en estado de descomposición, en descomposición; [tooth] → cariado; [building] → muy deteriorado, ruinoso; [stone] → que se descompone
2. (fig) [civilization] → decadente, en decadencia
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
decaying
[dɪˈkeɪɪŋ] adj (vegetation, flesh) → in decomposizione; (teeth) → cariato/a; (building, urban area) → in rovina; (civilization) → in declinoCollins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995