What does "debauch" mean?
An individual act of debauchery.
Debauch
/dɪˈbɔːt͡ʃ/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An individual act of debauchery.
- Grammar: debauch is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: bacchanal, orgy, abuse, adulterate.
- Useful contrasts: abstain, ascetic, asceticism.
- Usage evidence: The pirates wished to debauch him because of his beauty.
How to use "debauch"
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- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "debauch" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
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- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
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- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "debauch" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "debauch" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "bacchanal" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
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Final meaning check
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When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An individual act of debauchery.
"[E]v'ry twentieth pace / Conducts the unguarded noſe to ſuch a whiff / Of ſtale debauch forth-iſſuing from the ſtyes / That law has licenſed, as makes temp'rance reel."
- 2 a wild gathering involving excessive drinking and promiscuity wordnet
- 3 An orgy.
"The flowers, oppressive to the eyes, blazed with not a petal stirring, in a debauch of sun."
Verb
- 1 To morally corrupt (someone); to seduce. transitive
"But the Devil had met with too much Success in his first Attempts, not to go on with his general Resolution of debauching the Minds of Men, and bringing them off from God."
- 2 corrupt morally or by intemperance or sensuality wordnet
- 3 To debase (something); to lower the value of (something). transitive
"Those who with nine months toil had spoil’d a Play, In hopes of Eating at a full Third day, Justly despairing longer to sustain A craving Stomach from an empty Brain, Have left Stage-Practice, chang’d their old Vocations, Atoning for bad Plays, with worse Translations, And like old Sternhold with laborious spite, Burlesque what nobler Muses better write: Thus while they for their Causes only seem To change the Channel, they corrupt the Stream. So breaking Vintners to increase their Wine, With nauseous Drugs debauch the generous Vine: So barren Gipsies for recruit are said, With Strangers Issue to maintain the Trade; But lest the fair Bantling should be known, A daubing Walnut makes him all their own."
- 4 To indulge in revelry. intransitive
Antonyms
Example
"The pirates wished to debauch him because of his beauty."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "debauch"?
Common synonyms include: bacchanal, orgy, abuse, adulterate, aggravate, alloy.
How do you use "debauch" in a sentence?
The pirates wished to debauch him because of his beauty.
How do you pronounce "debauch"?
Pronounced /dɪˈbɔːt͡ʃ/.
Etymology
1590s, from Middle French desbaucher (“entice from work or duty”), from Old French desbauchier (“to lead astray”), from des- + bauch (“beam”), from Frankish *balkō, from Proto-Germanic *balkô, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰelǵ- (“beam, plank”); latter origin of balk. Evolution of sense unclear; may be literally “to shave/trim wood to make a beam” or may be “to leave/lure someone from a workshop”, Frankish *balkō perhaps also meaning “workshop”. Possible corruption by way of Anglicised French term bord (“edge, curb”): curb crawling as a synonym for prostitution. Parallels in modern German: Bordsteinschwalbe (“prostitute”, literally “Curb-stone-swallow”). English words bawd, bawdiness may be similarly connected.