degradation Meaning, Definition & Usage

noun changing to a lower state (a less respected state)
debasement.
noun a low or downcast state
abasement; abjection.
- each confession brought her into an attitude of abasement"- H.L.Menchken

LL. degradatio, from degradare: cf. F. dégradation. See Degrade.

The act of reducing in rank, character, or reputation, or of abasing; a lowering from one's standing or rank in office or society; diminution; as, the degradation of a peer, a knight, a general, or a bishop.
He saw many removes and degradations in all the other offices of which he had been possessed. Clarendon.
The state of being reduced in rank, character, or reputation; baseness; moral, physical, or intellectual degeneracy; disgrace; abasement; debasement.
The . . . degradation of a needy man of letters. Macaulay.

Deplorable is the degradation of our nature. South.

Moments there frequently must be, when a sier is sensible of the degradation of his state. Blair.
Diminution or reduction of strength, efficacy, or value; degeneration; deterioration.
The development and degradation of the alphabetic forms can be traced. I. Taylor (The Alphabet).
(Geol.) A gradual wearing down or wasting, as of rocks and banks, by the action of water, fro etc.
(Biol.) The state or condition of a species or group which exhibits degraded forms; degeneration.
The degradation of the species man is observed in some of its varieties. Dana.
(Physiol.) Arrest of development, or degeneration of any organ, or of the body as a whole. Syn. -- Abasement; debasement; reduction; decline.