debauch[dē bôc̸h′, di-]
- Debauch is defined as the act of indulging in sensual pleasures.
When you love good food and fine wine and you are always going out for extravagant dinners, this is an example of debauch.
- To debauch is defined as to seduce or corrupt someone's morality.
When a man seduces a woman and tricks her into doing inappropriate sexual acts, this is an example of when he debauches her.
Origin of debauchFrench débaucher ; from Old French desbaucher, to seduce, origin, originally , to separate (branches from trunk) ; from des-, away from + bauch, beam, tree trunk ; from Frankish an unverified form balko, beam: for Indo-European base see balk
- debauchery (sense )
- an orgy
Origin of debauchFr débauche < the v.
verbde·bauched, de·bauch·ing, de·bauch·es
- a. To corrupt morally. See Synonyms at corrupt.b. To seduce (someone).
- To reduce the value, quality, or excellence of; debase: debauch a currency.
- Archaic To cause to forsake allegiance.
- The act or a period of debauchery.
- An orgy.
Origin of debauchFrench débaucher, from Old French desbauchier, to lead astray, roughhew timber : des-, de- + bauch, beam, of Germanic origin.
(third-person singular simple present debauches, present participle debauching, simple past and past participle debauched)
1590s, from Middle French desbaucher (“entice from work or duty”), from Old French desbaucher (“to lead astray”), from des- + bauch (“beam”), from Frankish *balko, from Proto-Germanic *balkô, from Proto-Indo-European *bhelg- (“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 *balko perhaps also meaning “workshop”.