Decadence Definition

dĕkə-dəns, dĭ-kādns
noun
A process, condition, or period of decline, as in morals, art, literature, etc.; deterioration; decay.
Webster's New World
A literary movement especially of late 19th-century France and England characterized by refined aestheticism, artifice, and the quest for new sensations.
American Heritage
Lavish or sensual self-indulgence.
Webster's New World
Antonyms:

Other Word Forms of Decadence

Noun

Singular:
decadence
Plural:
decadences

Origin of Decadence

  • French décadence from Old French decadence from Medieval Latin dēcadentia a decaying, declining from Vulgar Latin dēcadere to decay decay

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • From French décadence, from Medieval Latin decadentia (“decay”), from *decadens (“decaying”), present participle of *decadere (“to decay”); see decay.

    From Wiktionary

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