late 15c., from Latin degeneratus, past participle of degenerare "to be inferior to one's ancestors, to become unlike one's race or kind, fall from ancestral quality," used of physical as well as moral qualities, from phrase de genere, from de + genus (genitive generis) "birth, descent" (see genus). The noun is from 1550s.
degenerate (v.)
1540s, from Latin degeneratus, past participle of degenerare "fall from ancestral quality" (see degenerate (adj.)). Figurative sense of "to fall off, decline" was in Latin. Related: Degenerated; degenerating.
雙語例句
1. Will too much freedom make them degenerate?
太多的自由會令他們墮落 嗎 ?
來自《簡明英漢詞典》
2. The newly emerging forces are bound to defeat what is corrupt and degenerate.
新生力量必然戰(zhàn)勝腐朽力量.
來自《現(xiàn)代漢英綜合大詞典》
3. Inactivity can make your joints stiff, and the bones may begin to degenerate.
長期不活動會導致關節(jié)僵硬，骨骼也可能開始退化。
來自辭典例句
4. From then on the whole tone of the campaign began to degenerate.
從那時起，整個活動的基調(diào)開始變質(zhì)。
來自辭典例句
5. We must not allow our necessary scepticism to degenerate into cynicism.