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(huì)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.