Meanings
noundeteriority (uncountable)
- obsoleteuncountableA worsening in quality or state; or inferiority.
And what account can vve give of their holding out for ſome Generations againſt the inconveniencies of the Air, or deteriority of Diet, but the ſtrength and firmneſs of their Conſtitutions?
1692, John Ray, “The First Question Concerning the World’s Dissolution, Whether there be Any Thing in Nature that may Probably Cause or Argue a Future Dissolution? Three Probable Means Propounded and Discussed.”, in Miscellaneous Discourses Concerning the Dissolution and Changes of the World. […], London: […] Samuel Smith, […], →OCLC, section I (The Waters Again Naturally Overflowing and Covering the Earth), page 43Synonyms: deterioration
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA worsening in quality or state; or inferiority.
Similar
Also see
Origin
- Latindeterior“worse”
- Englishdeteriority
From Latin deterior (“worse”). See deteriorate.
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
deteriority. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/deteriority
MLA
“deteriority.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/deteriority. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “deteriority,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/deteriority.
Source: deteriority on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.