decayed, rotten, rotted
(adjective) damaged by decay; hence unsound and useless; “rotten floor boards”; “rotted beams”; “a decayed foundation”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
decayed (comparative more decayed, superlative most decayed)
Having undergone decay, rotted.
(dated) Reduced in circumstances; having lost one's status or fortune.
decayed
simple past tense and past participle of decay
Source: Wiktionary
De*cayed", a.
Definition: Fallen, as to physical or social condition; affected with decay; rotten; as, decayed vegetation or vegetables; a decayed fortune or gentleman.
– De*cay"ed*ness, n.
De*cay", v. i. [imp. & p. p. Decayed; p. pr. & vb. n. Decaying.] Etym: [OF. decaeir, dechaer, decheoir, F. déchoir, to decline, fall, become less; L. de- + cadere to fall. See Chance.]
Definition: To pass gradually from a sound, prosperous, or perfect state, to one of imperfection, adversity, or dissolution; to waste away; to decline; to fail; to become weak, corrupt, or disintegrated; to rot; to perish; as, a tree decays; fortunes decay; hopes decay. Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates and men decay. Goldsmith.
De*cay", v. t.
1. To cause to decay; to impair. [R.] Infirmity, that decays the wise. Shak.
2. To destroy. [Obs.] Shak.
De*cay", n.
1. Gradual failure of health, strength, soundness, prosperity, or of any species of excellence or perfection; tendency toward dissolution or extinction; corruption; rottenness; decline; deterioration; as, the decay of the body; the decay of virtue; the decay of the Roman empire; a castle in decay. Perhaps my God, though he be far before, May turn, and take me by the hand, and more -May strengthen my decays. Herbert. His [Johnson's] failure was not to be ascribed to intellectual decay. Macaulay. Which has caused the decay of the consonants to follow somewhat different laws. James Byrne.
2. Destruction; death. [Obs.] Spenser.
3. Cause of decay. [R.] He that plots to be the only figure among ciphers, is the decay of the whole age. Bacon.
Syn.
– Decline; consumption. See Decline.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
6 March 2025
(noun) the two innermost layers of the meninges; cerebrospinal fluid circulates between these innermost layers
The Boston Tea Party helped popularize coffee in America. The hefty tea tax imposed on the colonies in 1773 resulted in America switching from tea to coffee. In the lead up to the Revolutionary War, it became patriotic to sip java instead of tea. The Civil War made the drink more pervasive. Coffee helped energize tired troops, and drinking it became an expression of freedom.
