A term for the amount of time that it takes for a cymbal to stop ringing. The quicker the decay, the sooner the cymbal will be silent. Crash and Chinese cymbals generally have slow decays, whereas splashes and rides typically have quick ones.

Lil bugs a-gatherin on yonder windowsill
Ants n mites in their procession line
Won't go hungry tonight, by God
They smell the rot in here

Legs don' wanna move no more, by God
Dorothy done found her peace
Lil Jimmy denied his
Reckon there ain't much time for livin

Bugs a-fightin on the windowsill
Every last pissant and dung beetle
Carcass ain't worth the ground it's lyin on
Even in this goddamn dyin room

DEC Wars = D = deckle

decay n.,vi

[from nuclear physics] An automatic conversion which is applied to most array-valued expressions in C; they `decay into' pointer-valued expressions pointing to the array's first element. This term is borderline techspeak, but is not used in the official standard for the language.

--The Jargon File version 4.3.1, ed. ESR, autonoded by rescdsk.

De*cay" (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Decayed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Decaying.] [OF. decaeir, dechaer, decheoir, F. d'echoir, to decline, fall, become less; L. de- + cadere to fall. See Chance.]

To pass gradually from a sound, prosperous, or perfect state, to one of imperfection, adversity, or dissolution; to waste away; to decline; to fail; to become weak, corrupt, or disintegrated; to rot; to perish; as, a tree decays; fortunes decay; hopes decay.

Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates and men decay. Goldsmith.

 

© Webster 1913.


De*cay", v. t.

1.

To cause to decay; to impair.

[R.]

Infirmity, that decays the wise. Shak.

2.

To destroy.

[Obs.]

Shak.

 

© Webster 1913.


De*cay", n.

1.

Gradual failure of health, strength, soundness, prosperity, or of any species of excellence or perfection; tendency toward dissolution or extinction; corruption; rottenness; decline; deterioration; as, the decay of the body; the decay of virtue; the decay of the Roman empire; a castle in decay.

Perhaps my God, though he be far before, May turn, and take me by the hand, and more - May strengthen my decays. Herbert.

His [Johnson's] failure was not to be ascribed to intellectual decay. Macaulay.

Which has caused the decay of the consonants to follow somewhat different laws. James Byrne.

2.

Destruction; death.

[Obs.]

Spenser.

3.

Cause of decay.

[R.]

He that plots to be the only figure among ciphers, is the decay of the whole age. Bacon.

Syn. -- Decline; consumption. See Decline.

 

© Webster 1913.

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