Decadent

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈdÉ›kÉ™dÉ™nt/

Origin

From French décadent, back-formation from décadence, from Medieval Latin decadentia, from Late Latin decadens ("decadens"), present participle of Late Latin decadō ("sink, fall"). Cognate with French décadent

Full definition of decadent

Adjective

1. Characterized by moral or cultural decline.
• Gore Vidal - The Decline and Fall of the American Empire (1992)As societies grow decadent, the language grows decadent, too. Words are used to disguise, not to illuminate, action: you liberate a city by destroying it. Words are to confuse, so that at election time people will solemnly vote against their own interests.
2. Luxuriously self-indulgent.
• in the episode ""Surgery in an opera? How wonderfully decadent! And just as I was beginning to lose interest!

Noun

1. A person affected by moral decay.

Related terms

• decadence
• decay

Anagrams

• decanted