degenerieren

[deɡeneˈʁiːʁən]

/[deɡeneˈʁiːʁən]/ verb

The verdict

“degenerieren” is uncommon German (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency German
12
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - sich zurückbilden, verkümmern

Corpus desk

Index DE-degenerieren · degenerieren · German

degenerieren · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-6 6 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "D" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for degenerieren
PropertyValue
Headworddegenerieren
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[deɡeneˈʁiːʁən]
Letters12
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „degenerieren“ im Deutschen

degenerierensitzt jenseits der 100.000 häufigsten deutschen Formen, im Schwanz spezialisierten oder seltenen Wortschatzes.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

degenerieren is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed [deɡeneˈʁiːʁən]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for degenerieren, a sign its spelling follows regular German conventions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct German form is degenerieren, spelled D-E-G-E-N-E-R-I-E-R-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    sich zurückbilden, verkümmern
  2. 2
    eine negative Entwicklung zeigen, einen geistigen und/oder körperlichen Verfall zeigen

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how degenerieren appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. „Heute sind die Pandas auf insgesamt 24 Reservate in Zentralchina verteilt, die isoliert liegen und keine ‚Korridore‘ zu anderen Panda-Populationen mehr besitzen. Daraus ergibt sich ein weiteres Problem. Die Tiere degenerieren durch Inzucht.“
  2. „Unsere westliche Gesellschaft ist zu einer Raff-Gesellschaft degeneriert. Die meisten haben nur noch ihre eigene Wohlfahrt im Auge.“

Antonyms

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "degenerieren"?
"degenerieren" is spelled D-E-G-E-N-E-R-I-E-R-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [deɡeneˈʁiːʁən].
What does "degenerieren" mean?
As a verb, "degenerieren" means: sich zurückbilden, verkümmern
How do you pronounce "degenerieren"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "degenerieren" is [deɡeneˈʁiːʁən]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "degenerieren" come from?
"degenerieren" is a German word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list