degradation
degradation (deg-r[schwa]-day-sh[schwa]n). 1. A reduction in rank, degree, or dignity; specif., censure of a clergy member by divestiture of holy orders, either by word or by a solemn divestiture of robes and other insignia. Cf. DEPOSITION(4); DEPRIVATION(4). 2. A moral or intellectual decadence or degeneration; a lessening of a person’s or thing’s character or quality […]