An Encylopedia Britannica Company

decay

2 ENTRIES FOUND:
1 decay /dɪˈkeɪ/ verb
decays; decayed; decaying
1 decay
/dɪˈkeɪ/
verb
decays; decayed; decaying
Britannica Dictionary definition of DECAY
: to be slowly destroyed by natural processes : to be slowly broken down by the natural processes that destroy a dead plant or body
[no object]
[+ object]
[no object] : to slowly lose strength, health, etc.
[no object] of a building, area, etc. : to go slowly from a bad condition to a worse condition : to slowly enter a state of ruin
decay, decompose, rot, putrefy, and spoil mean to slowly fall apart and become destroyed by natural processes.
decay is the most general of these terms. It often suggests a slow change from a state of strength or perfection.
decompose stresses that bacteria, worms, insects, etc., are destroying and breaking apart something that is dead.
rot is a close synonym of
decompose but also suggests a bad smell.
putrefy is very similar to
decompose and rot but is used to refer to dead people or animals and not to plants. It suggests that something is extremely unpleasant to see or smell.
spoil is used when talking about food that is no longer safe to eat.
2 decay /dɪˈkeɪ/ noun
2 decay
/dɪˈkeɪ/
noun
Britannica Dictionary definition of DECAY
[noncount]
: the process or result of decaying: such as
: the process or result of being slowly destroyed by natural processes
: the slow loss of strength, health, etc.
of a building, area, etc. : the process or result of going slowly from a bad condition to a worse condition