corrupt

 
Pronunciation: /kəˈrʌpt/

adjective

  • 1having or showing a willingness to act dishonestly in return for money or personal gain: unscrupulous logging companies assisted by corrupt officials
  • evil or morally depraved: the old corrupt order
  • 2(of a text or a computer database or program) made unreliable by errors or alterations: a progressively corrupt magnetic record is usable nonetheless
  • 3 archaic (of organic or inorganic matter) in a state of decay; rotten or putrid: a corrupt and rotting corpse

verb

[with object]
  • 1cause to act dishonestly in return for money or personal gain: there is a continuing fear of firms corrupting politicians in the search for contracts
  • cause to become morally depraved: he has corrupted the boy
  • 2change or debase by making errors or unintentional alterations: a backup copy will be needed if the original copy becomes corrupted Epicurus’s teachings have since been much corrupted
  • 3 archaic infect; contaminate: (as adjective corrupting) the corrupting smell of death

Derivatives

corrupter

noun

corruptibility

noun

corruptible

adjective

corruptive

adjective

corruptly

adverb

corruptness

noun

Origin:

Middle English: from Latin corruptus, past participle of corrumpere 'mar, bribe, destroy', from cor- 'altogether' + rumpere 'to break'