Dictionary  de•gen•er•atePronunciation: ( —v.di-jen'u-rāt"; —adj., n.di-jen'ur-it), [key] —v., -at•ed, -at•ing, —adj., n. —v.i. 1. to fall below a normal or desirable level in physical, mental, or moral qualities; deteriorate: The morale of the soldiers degenerated, and they were unable to fight. 2. to diminish in quality, esp. from a former state of coherence, balance, integrity, etc.: The debate degenerated into an exchange of insults. 3. Pathol.to lose functional activity, as a tissue or organ. 4. Evolution.(of a species or any of its traits or structures) to revert to a simple, less highly organized, or less functionally active type, as a parasitic plant that has lost its taproot or the vestigial wings of a flightless bird. —v.t. to cause degeneration in; bring about a decline, deterioration, or reversion in. —adj. 1. having fallen below a normal or desirable level, esp. in physical or moral qualities; deteriorated; degraded: a degenerate king. 2. having lost, or become impaired with respect to, the qualities proper to the race or kind: a degenerate vine. 3. characterized by or associated with degeneracy: degenerate times. 4. Math.pertaining to a limiting case of a mathematical system that is more symmetrical or simpler in form than the general case. 5. Physics. a. (of modes of vibration of a system) having the same frequency. b. (of quantum states of a system) having equal energy. —n. 1. a person who has declined, as in morals or character, from a type or standard considered normal. 2. a person or thing that reverts to an earlier stage of culture, development, or evolution. 3. a sexual deviate. Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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