dilapidating
Crumbling from neglect
Dilapidating is falling into disrepair or causing something to fall into disrepair.
Buildings dilapidate through neglect—roofs leak, walls crumble, foundations crack.
The word usually describes gradual decay rather than sudden destruction: The old factory had been dilapidating for decades.
Something dilapidated has already reached that sorry state.
Process of declining quality
- rotOrganic breakdown process
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- corrosionChemical wearing away
- oxidationLosing electrons chemically
crumbling · moldering · withering · erosion · atrophy · degradation · disintegration · putrefaction
Sudden structural failure
- crackingBreaking without separating completely
- fractureSplit in hard material
- crumblingBreaking down gradually
- bucklingBending from compression
sagging · warping · settling · splintering · fissuring · subsidence · leaking · rotting
Destroyed remains of something
- desolationState of complete emptiness
- shamblesState of total disorder
- rubbleBroken building fragments
- ruinationState of complete destruction
devastation · squalor · blight · eyesore · condemned · uninhabitable · gutted · decrepit
Act of leaving permanently
- disrepairPoor maintained condition
- derelictionAbandonment of duty
- negligenceFailure to exercise care
- disuseCessation of practice
inattention · carelessness · indifference · apathy · heedlessness · overlook · remissness · deferment
deterioration
Process of declining quality
- rotOrganic breakdown process
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- corrosionChemical wearing away
oxidation · crumbling · moldering · withering · erosion · atrophy · degradation · disintegration · putrefaction · weathering
collapse
Sudden structural failure
- crackingBreaking without separating completely
- fractureSplit in hard material
- crumblingBreaking down gradually
buckling · sagging · warping · settling · splintering · fissuring · subsidence · leaking · rotting · weakening
wreckage
Destroyed remains of something
- desolationState of complete emptiness
- shamblesState of total disorder
- rubbleBroken building fragments
ruination · devastation · squalor · blight · eyesore · condemned · uninhabitable · gutted · decrepit · ramshackle
abandonment
Act of leaving permanently
- disrepairPoor maintained condition
- derelictionAbandonment of duty
- negligenceFailure to exercise care
disuse · inattention · carelessness · indifference · apathy · heedlessness · overlook · remissness · deferment · forgetfulness
dilapidatingrestoring
Returning to original condition
renovating · rebuilding · repairing · refurbishing · rehabilitating
dilapidatingpreserving
Protecting from deterioration
maintaining · conserving · upkeeping · tending · caring for