De‐gen″er‐ate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p.Degenerated; p. pr. & vb. n.Degenerating.] 1. To be or grow worse than one's kind, or than one was originally; hence, to be inferior; to grow poorer, meaner, or more vicious; to decline in good qualities; to deteriorate.
When wit transgresseth decency, it degenerates into insolence and impiety. Tillotson.
2. (Biol.) To fall off from the normal quality or the healthy structure of its kind; to become of a lower type.