Standard Lemma guide

degradable

adj · noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: [dɪˈɡɹeɪdəbəɫ]
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: D IH0 G R EY1 D AH0 B AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Able to be chemically or biologically degraded.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Having a complementary qubit channel and some third noise channel, such that adding the noise to the original channel replicates the complementary channel.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Qualifier: quantum mechanics

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Any material that can be degraded or decomposed.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree English degrade Proto-Indo-European *-tḗr Proto-Indo-European *-dhlom Proto-Indo-European *-dhlis Proto-Italic *-ðlis Latin -bilis Latin -ābilis Old French -ablebor. Middle English -able English -able English degradable From degrade + -able.

Across languages

Translations

17 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: degradable — that which can be degraded
  • Dutch: afbreekbaar — that which can be degraded
  • Esperanto: degradebla — that which can be degraded
  • Finnish: hajoava — that which can be degraded
  • French: dégradable — that which can be degraded
  • Galician: degradable — that which can be degraded
  • Galician: degradábel — that which can be degraded
  • German: abbaubar — that which can be degraded
  • Greek: αποικοδομήσιμος (apoikodomísimos) — that which can be degraded
  • Hungarian: lebomló — that which can be degraded
  • Italian: degradabile — that which can be degraded
  • Polish: podatny na rozkład — that which can be degraded
  • Portuguese: degradável — that which can be degraded
  • Russian: разлага́емый (razlagájemyj) — that which can be degraded
  • Spanish: degradable — that which can be degraded
  • Swedish: nedbrytbar — that which can be degraded
  • Swedish: brytbar — that which can be degraded