List of 426 Sets of Synonyms - How they Differ - Total of 2307 Words - 101

SYNONYMS: decay, rot, putrefy, spoil, crumble, disintegrate, decompose.
These verbs all refer to gradual change resulting in destruction or dissolution.

Decay denotes a falling away from soundness; it may imply a stage in deterioration short of complete destruction: Dentists advise their patients to brush and floss regularly to prevent their teeth from decaying.
Rot is sometimes synonymous with decay (wood that had rotted), but it often, like putrefy, stresses a stage of deterioration marked by offensiveness to the sense of smell: Animal flesh that rots is attractive to vultures. The intact carcass of the prehistoric animal was prevented from putrefying by the Arctic cold.
Spoil usually refers to the process by which perishable substances, especially food, become unfit for use or consumption: I put the veal scallops into the refrigerator before they could spoil.
Crumble implies the physical breakdown of a substance into small fragments or particles: We saw a church that had crumbled to ruins.
Disintegrate refers to complete breakdown into component parts and implies the destruction of usefulness or integrity: The sandstone had disintegrated from long exposure to the elements.
Decompose, largely restricted to the breakdown of substances into their chemical components, and also connotes rotting and putrefying, both literally and figuratively: Their bodies lay there decomposing in the summer heat.