decent

See also: décent

English

Etymology

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) IPA^(key): /ˈdiːsənt/

• 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, Stephen Fry, The Liar, London: Heinemann, →OCLC, page 35:

     And ‘blubbing’... Blubbing went out with ‘decent’ and ‘ripping’. Mind you, not a bad new language to start up. Nineteen-twenties 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.

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

• do the decent thing
• half-decent
• halfway decent
• jolly D
• semidecent

 

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
• Hungarian: illő (hu), illedelmes (hu), illendő (hu), ildomos (hu)
• 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)

• 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)
• 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 (de)
• 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)
• 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)
• 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.

Anagrams

• cedent

Friulian

Etymology

From Latin decens.

Adjective

decent

1. decent

Latin

Verb

decent

1. third-person plural present active indicative of decet

Occitan

Etymology

From Latin decens.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

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 and 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)