decent

See also: décent

English

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Middle French décent, or its source, Latin decēns, present participle of decet (“it is fitting or suitable”), from Proto-Indo-European *deḱ- (“to take, accept, to receive, greet, be suitable”) (compare Ancient Greek δοκέω (dokéō, “I appear, seem, think”), δέχομαι (dékhomai, “I accept”); Sanskrit दशस्यति (daśasyáti, “shows honor, is gracious”), दाशति (dāśati, “makes offerings, bestows”)). Meaning ‘kind, pleasant’ is from 1902.

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /ˈdiːs(ə)nt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːsənt

Adjective

decent (comparative more decent, superlative most decent)

1. Appropriate; suitable for the circumstances.
2. (of a person) Having a suitable conformity to basic moral standards; showing integrity, fairness, or other characteristics associated with moral uprightness.
3. (informal) Sufficiently clothed or dressed to be seen.

   Are you decent? May I come in?

4. Fair; acceptable; okay.

   He's a decent saxophonist, but probably not good enough to make a career of it.

   • 1963, Margery Allingham, “Foreword”, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:

     A canister of flour from the kitchen had been thrown at the looking-glass and lay like trampled snow over the remains of a decent blue suit with the lining ripped out which lay on top of the ruin of a plastic wardrobe.

   • [1991 September, Stephen Fry, chapter 1, in The Liar, London: Heinemann, →ISBN, section II, page 24:

     And ‘blubbing’ . . . Blubbing went out with ‘decent’ and ‘ripping’. Mind you, not a bad new language to start up. 1920s schoolboy slang could be due for a revival.]

   • 2021 June 30, Philip Haigh, “Regional trains squeezed as ECML congestion heads north”, in RAIL, number 934, page 53:

     I'm all for opening new stations (Transport Scotland is planning another at East Linton, about halfway between Drem and Dunbar), but they are useless without a decent service.

5. Significant; substantial.

   There are a decent number of references out there, if you can find them.

6. Conforming to perceived standards of good taste.
   • 1899 February, Joseph Conrad, “The Heart of Darkness”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume CLXV, number M, New York, N.Y.: The Leonard Scott Publishing Company, […], →OCLC, part I, page 201:

     I had a cup of tea - the last decent cup of tea for many days; and in a room that most soothingly looked just as you would expect a lady’s drawing-room to look, we had a long quiet chat by the fireside.

7. (obsolete) Comely; shapely; well-formed.
   • a. 1645, John Milton, “Il Penseroso”, in Poems of Mr. John Milton, […], London: […] Ruth Raworth for Humphrey Mosely, […], published 1646, →OCLC, page 38:

     And ſable ſtole of Cipres Lawn,
     Over thy decent ſhoulders drawn.

Usage notes

• This term has a mildly positive connotation. Compare respectable.

Synonyms

• (conforming suitably to moral standards): good, moral
• (good enough): See Thesaurus:satisfactory

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “conforming suitably to moral standards”): bad, immoral
• (antonym(s) of “sufficiently clothed”): indecent, underdressed
• (antonym(s) of “good enough”): inadequate, poor, unsatisfactory

Derived terms

• decentish
• decentness
• do the decent thing
• half-decent
• halfway decent
• jolly D
• semidecent
• undecent

Related terms

• decency
• decently

Translations

appropriate, suitable for the circumstances

Azerbaijani: yararlı (az), uyğun (az) Bulgarian: прие́млив (bg) (priémliv) Danish: anstændig Finnish: sopiva (fi) Galician: decente Hindi: शोभनीय (hi) (śobhnīya), उचित (hi) (ucit), उपयुक्त (hi) (upyukt) Hungarian: illő (hu), illedelmes (hu), illendő (hu), ildomos (hu) Portuguese: digno (pt) Russian: подходя́щий (ru) (podxodjáščij), прие́млемый (ru) (prijémlemyj) Turkish: uygun (tr), onat (tr)

showing integrity, fairness, moral uprightness

Azerbaijani: saf (az), düz-əməlli, dürüst (az) Belarusian: прысто́йны (prystójny) Bulgarian: благоприли́чен (bg) (blagoprilíčen), прили́чен (bg) (prilíčen), присто́ен (bg) (pristóen) Chinese: Mandarin: 體面 / 体面 (zh) (tǐmiàn), 正派 (zh) (zhèngpài) Czech: slušný (cs) Danish: anstændig, pæn (da) Dutch: integer (nl), fatsoenlijk (nl) Finnish: kunnollinen (fi), rehellinen (fi), säädyllinen (fi) French: intègre (fr) Galician: decente m or f Georgian: წესიერი (c̣esieri), ზრდილი (zrdili) German: anständig (de), sittsam (de) Alemannic German: aaschtändig Greek: κόσμιος (el) (kósmios), ευπρεπής (el) (efprepís) Hebrew: הגון (he) (hagun), יָשָׁר (he) m (yashár) Hindi: शालीन (hi) (śālīn), सभ्य (hi) (sabhya), उचित (hi) (ucit) Hungarian: tisztességes (hu), derék (hu), rendes (hu) Indonesian: baik (id) Ingrian: vernoi Irish: gnaíúil Italian: perbene (it) Macedonian: пристоен (pristoen) Norwegian: Bokmål: anstendig (no) Polish: przyzwoity (pl) Portuguese: decente (pt) Russian: поря́дочный (ru) (porjádočnyj), прили́чный (ru) (prilíčnyj), благопристо́йный (ru) (blagopristójnyj), присто́йный (ru) (pristójnyj), благоприли́чный (blagoprilíčnyj) Scottish Gaelic: cothromach, iomchaidh Serbo-Croatian: Cyrillic: при́сто̄јан Roman: prístōjan (sh) Slovak: slušný Slovene: spodoben (sl); dostojen Spanish: decente (es) Sundanese: bener Swedish: sedesam (sv) Turkish: saygın (tr), terbiyeli (tr), onat (tr) Ukrainian: присто́йний (prystójnyj)

sufficiently clothed

Bulgarian: прили́чен (bg) (prilíčen) Danish: anstændig, sømmelig, passende Dutch: toonbaar (nl) Finnish: pukeutunut (fi), pukeissa (fi); vaatteet päällä (lit. "clothes on") French: décent (fr) m Galician: decente Georgian: შესაფერისი (šesaperisi) German: anständig bekleidet, vorzeigbar; (“are you decent?”) bist du angezogen?, hast du was an? Hungarian: van rajta ruha Norwegian: Bokmål: anstendig (no) Portuguese: decente (pt) Russian: оде́тый (ru) (odétyj) Slovene: spodoben (sl); dostojen Swedish: anständig (sv) Turkish: edepli (tr), giyinik (tr), müsait (tr)

fair; good enough; okay

Azerbaijani: əməlli, düz-əməlli, əməlli-başlı, fərli Bulgarian: прили́чен (bg) (prilíčen) Chinese: Mandarin: 不錯 / 不错 (zh) (bùcuò), 不賴 / 不赖 (zh) (bùlài) (dialectal) Czech: slušný (cs) m Danish: brugbar (da) Dutch: redelijk (nl) Finnish: kunnollinen (fi), käypä (fi), kelpo (fi), ihan hyvä French: décent (fr) Galician: decente Georgian: შესაფერისი (šesaperisi), წესიერი (c̣esieri) German: (ganz) anständig Greek: της προκοπής (tis prokopís) Hindi: उचित (hi) (ucit) Hungarian: tisztességes (hu), valamirevaló (hu), megfelelő (hu), elfogadható (hu), tűrhető (hu) Icelandic: viðeigandi Ingrian: viksi, viksu Italian: presentabile (it) Norwegian: Bokmål: brukbar, bra nok (no), helt greit Polish: niezły (pl) m Portuguese: razoável (pt), decente (pt) Russian: прили́чный (ru) (prilíčnyj), хоро́ший (ru) (xoróšij), неплохо́й (ru) (neploxój) Scottish Gaelic: cothromach Slovene: spodoben (sl) Spanish: decente (es) Swedish: hyfsad (sv) Turkish: makul (tr), yeterli (tr)

significant; substantial

Bulgarian: прили́чен (bg) (prilíčen), значи́телен (bg) (značítelen) Czech: slušný (cs) m Danish: pæn (da), anstændig Dutch: substantieel (nl), significant (nl) Finnish: huomattava (fi), kunnollinen (fi), kelvollinen (fi) French: substantiel (fr) Georgian: წესიერი (c̣esieri) German: anständig (de) Hungarian: jó pár, jó néhány Norwegian: Bokmål: anstendig (no) Portuguese: razoável (pt) Russian: прили́чный (ru) (prilíčnyj), значи́тельный (ru) (značítelʹnyj) Slovene: spodoben (sl) Spanish: decente (es) Turkish: (colloquial) adam gibi (tr), yeterli (tr)

comely; shapely; well-formed

Finnish: komea (fi)

References

• “decent”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Etymology 2

Noun

decent

1. Misspelling of descent.

Anagrams

• cedent

Friulian

Etymology

From Latin decens.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /deˈt͡ʃent/

Adjective

decent

1. decent

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈdɛ.kɛnt]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈdɛː.t͡ʃent]

Verb

decent

1. third-person plural present active indicative of decet

Occitan

Etymology

From Latin decens.

Pronunciation

• Audio (Béarn):

  (file)

This entry needs pronunciation information. If you are familiar with the IPA then please add some!

Adjective

decent m (feminine singular decenta, masculine plural decents, feminine plural decentas)

1. decent

Derived terms

• decentament

Related terms

• decéncia

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French décent, from Latin decens.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /deˈt͡ʃent/

Adjective

decent m or n (feminine singular decentă, masculine plural decenți, feminine/neuter plural decente)

1. decent

Declension

Declension of decent

		singular				plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine		masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative- accusative	indefinite	decent		decentă		decenți	decente
	definite	decentul		decenta		decenții	decentele
genitive- dative	indefinite	decent		decente		decenți	decente
	definite	decentului		decentei		decenților	decentelor

Further reading

• “decent”, in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language) (in Romanian), 2004–2025