Decadence vs. Decadency — What's the Difference?

The word decadence, which at first meant simply "decline" in an abstract sense, is now most often used to refer to a perceived decay in standards, morals, dignity, religious faith, honor, discipline, or skill at governing among the members of the elite of a very large social structure, such as an empire or nation state. By extension, it may refer to a decline in art, literature, science, technology, and work ethics, or (very loosely) to self-indulgent behavior.

Decadence.

A process, condition, or period of deterioration or decline, as in morals or art; decay.

Decadence.

Often Decadence A literary movement especially of late 19th-century France and England characterized by refined aestheticism, artifice, and the quest for new sensations.

The state of being degenerate in mental or moral qualities

A state of moral or artistic decline or deterioration; decay

The quality of being luxuriously self-indulgent.

A falling away; decay; deterioration; declension. "The old castle, where the family lived in their decadence."

The state of being degenerate in mental or moral qualities