rotten

CEFRB2

/ˈɹɒtn̩/

adjective

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Decayed, spoiled, or no longer good to eat or use.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Very unpleasant, dishonest, or morally bad.

Examples

  • Quite a lot of rotten apples were in the basket.

  • Half of the apples are rotten.

At a glance

Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5
Synonyms
5

Also pronounced

  • [ˈɹɑʔn̩]

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meanings

  1. Cruel, mean or immoral.

  2. In a state of decay.

  3. Of perishable items, overridden with bacteria and other infectious agents.

More examples

In context

  • His mouth stank and his teeth were rotten.

  • If you leave a bin unattended for a few weeks, the rubbish inside will turn rotten.

  • The floors were damaged and the walls were rotten.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The old fruit became blank and full of mold after being left in the sun.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

From Middle English roten, from Old Norse rotinn (“decayed, rotten”), past participle of an unrecorded verb related to Old Norse rotna (“to rot”) and Old English rotian (“to rot”), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *rutāną (“to rot”). See rot. By surface analysis, rot + -en (past participle).