Make Your Point: DECREPIT

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pronounce DECREPIT:

duh KREP it

Hear it.

connect this word to others:

See if you can recall some snazzy synonyms of decrepit:

1. Something di_____ated is so old that it's fallen into ruin or decay.

2. Something w_z__ed is so old that it seems dried up, shriveled up, or withered.

3. Something anted____ian is so old that it seems prehistoric or extremely old-fashioned.

Today we'll explore the creepy-sounding word decrepit, meaning "so old that it seems to be cracking or breaking."

(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)

definition:

"Decrepit" comes from a Latin word meaning "very old," with bits that literally mean "cracking down, or breaking down."

Something decrepit is very old and worn-out, with most or all of its strength gone, and it seems to be cracking, crackling, or creaking with age.

grammatical bits:

Part of speech:

Adjective: "a decrepit rosebush;" "Their military is decrepit."

Other forms:

The adverb is "decrepitly," and the noun, "decrepitude."

A closely related verb is "crepitate," meaning "to crackle, or to rattle." Here's Robert Louis Stevenson: "[The church music] rose and fell and crepitated like the barking of hounds in a distant kennel." The other forms are "crepitated," "crepitating," and "crepitation;" and the adjective, which is extremely rare, is "crepitant," as in "We walked in the cool October air, the leaves crepitant under our boots."

Another closely related verb is "decrepitate." When you heat up salts or minerals and they decrepitate, they make a crackling sound. And you can decrepitate them: heat them until they stop crackling. The other forms of this action are "decrepitated," "decrepitating," and "decrepitation."

how to use it:

Pick the dramatic, semi-common, very negative word "decrepit" when you need to emphasize how something is so old and so broken-down that it seems to be creaking or rattling with age or even decay.

You might talk about decrepit books, pieces of furniture, vehicles, machines, or appliances, like a decrepit refrigerator with a persistent leak.

Or, talk about decrepit signs, roads, bridges, buildings, neighborhoods and so on. Here's David Guterson: "A few wind-whipped and decrepit Victorian mansions... loomed out of the snowfall on the town's sporadic hills."

You can even get figurative and talk about decrepit school systems, economies, militaries, etc.

If you talk about decrepit animals or people or body parts, just be aware that it's a really harsh and insulting thing to say.

examples:

"[The houses] were old and decrepit but there were picket fences around them with gates on which Francie longed to swing."
— Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, 1943

"My mother was 40 when I was born, creaking with antiquity by 1964 standards, and she used her advanced decrepitude as a kind of get-out-of-everything-free card."
— Liz Langley, Salon, 28 July 2014

has this page helped you understand "decrepit"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "decrepit" without saying "decaying" or "run-down."

try it out:

Fill in the blanks: "The decrepit (vehicle, machine, appliance, device, or piece of software) (coughed, wheezed, choked, creaked, crackled, sputtered, or slowed to a halt), losing the battle against (something)."

Example 1: "My decrepit phone battery sputtered out at 60%, losing the battle against time."

Example 2: "The decrepit window air conditioner wheezed, losing the battle against the mugginess of his living room."
— Jeff Zentner, The Serpent King, 2016

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

Our game for March: it's the Inkhorn Stinkhorn!

It’s inspired by the Twofer Goofer, created by Collin Waldoch, in which you're given a circumlocutory clue, like "An eater with an excessive appetite for clothes fasteners," and you provide a rhyming answer, in this case "button glutton." You're then treated to an AI-generated rendering of the goofy concept you just named. In general in the Twofer Goofer, the words are straightforward and the AI art is lovely.

But here in the Inkhorn Stinkhorn, the words are pedantic and the AI art is atrocious. Enjoy!

Try this one today: Name a two-word rhyming phrase that means "cuddly bears caught in a violently swirling whirlpool."

Clue #1: To reveal the first letter of each word, highlight the following text… t____ e___

Clue #2: To reveal one of the words, highlight the following text… teddy e___

For the answer, scroll all the way down!

review this word:

1. Opposites of DECREPIT include

A. WARM and KIND.
B. YOUNG and ROBUST.
C. PRICEY and INVALUABLE.

2. Knowing the derivation of words like "decrepit," "crepitate," and "decrepitation," you can figure out that a "crepitaculum" is a snake's _____.

A. fang
B. tongue
C. rattle

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words.

From my blog:
On vocabulary...
  36 ways to study words.
  Why we forget words, & how to remember them.
  How to use sophisticated words without being awkward.
On writing...
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How to motivate our kids to write.
How to stop procrastinating and start writing.
How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count.

From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.

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