deteriorate Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. verb become worse or disintegrate
    • His mind deteriorated
  2. verb grow worse
    drop; devolve; degenerate.
    • Her condition deteriorated
    • Conditions in the slums degenerated
    • The discussion devolved into a shouting match

WordNet

De*te"ri*o*rate transitive verb
Etymology
L. deterioratus, p. p. of deteriorate to deteriorate, fr. deterior worse, prob. a comparative fr. de down, away.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Deteriorated ; present participle & verbal noun Deteriorating
Definitions
  1. To make worse; to make inferior in quality or value; to impair; as, to deteriorate the mind. Whately.
    The art of war . . . was greatly deteriorated. Southey.
De*te"ri*o*rate intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To grow worse; to be impaired in quality; to degenerate.
    Under such conditions, the mind rapidly deteriorates. Goldsmith.

Webster 1913