Separation into parts or constituent elements; reduction of any body or mass to elements or atoms; destruction of the existing condition…

A state of bodily dissolution or decay. Obsolete. rare.

Decay, deterioration; crumbling; rotting; an instance of this.

Reduction to atoms or to an impalpable condition; complete disintegration or dissolution.

Departure from ordinary or normal condition, as in physical deformity, decomposition, etc.

The action or process of decomposing, separation or resolution (of anything) into its constituent… The natural dissolution of compound bodies…

The action or process of disintegrating, or the condition of being disintegrated; reduction to… literal; spec. in Geology, the wearing down of…

Decomposition brought about by chemical action.

The chemical decomposition of organic matter by the action of bacteria, esp. as used in the treatment of sewage.

The breakdown and decomposition of a substance or object (esp. refuse or a potential pollutant) by the action of living organisms (esp. bacteria), or…

Chemical or physical decomposition. Also attributive, as breakdown product n. a product resulting from the disintegration of a substance.

Deterioration of a substance or object caused by the action of living organisms. Cf. biodegradation, n.