rot
Pronunciation: (rot), [key]
— v., n., interj. rot•ted, rot•ting,
—v.i.
- to undergo decomposition; decay.
- to deteriorate, disintegrate, fall, or become weak due to decay (often fol. by away, from, off, etc.).
- to languish, as in confinement.
- to become morally corrupt or offensive.
—v.t.
- to cause to rot: Dampness rots wood.
- to cause moral decay in; cause to become morally corrupt.
- to ret (flax, hemp, etc.).
—n.
- the process of rotting.
- the state of being rotten; decay; putrefaction: the rot of an old house.
- rotting or rotten matter: the rot and waste of a swamp.
- moral or social decay or corruption.
- any disease characterized by decay.
-
- any of various forms of decay produced by fungi or bacteria.
- any disease so characterized.
- a bacterial infection of sheep and cattle characterized by decay of the hoofs, caused by Fusobacterium necrophorum in cattle and Bacteroides nodosus in sheep.
- nonsense.
—interj.
- (used to express disagreement, distaste, or disgust.)
ROT
- rule of thumb.
rot.
- rotating.
- rotation.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.