Definitions
fall into decay or ruin
Word origin
From Middle English decaien (“to decrease, diminish”) and decai (“deterioration, decline in value”), from Anglo-Norman decaeir (“to fall away, decay, decline”), from Vulgar Latin *dēcadere, etymologically restored form of Latin dēcidere (“to fall down, to fail, sink or perish”), from de- (“of, from, away, down”) + cadere (“to fall”). Compare decadent and decadence.
Used in a sentence
“tooth decay/dental decay—wood-decay fungi—bacterial decay—photochemical decay”
“He spent himself, the labour of his axe, And leave it there far from a useful fireplace To warm the frozen swamp as best it could With the slow smokeless burning of decay.”
“civic and moral decay—systemic decay—fall into decay—urban decay—arrested decay—memory decay”
Source: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0
Used as a crossword answer1 curated clues
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