natural decay

collocation in English

meaningsofnaturalanddecay

These words are often used together. Click on the links below to explore the meanings. Or,see other collocations withdecay.
natural
adjective
uk
/ˈnætʃ.ər.əl/us
/ˈnætʃ.ɚ.əl/
as found in nature and not involving anything made or done ...
See more atnatural
decay
noun[U]
uk
/dɪˈkeɪ/us
/dɪˈkeɪ/
the process ...
See more atdecay

(Definition ofnaturalanddecayfrom theCambridge English Dictionary© Cambridge University Press)

Examplesofnatural decay

These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
Archaeologists are limited to collecting material items that survivenaturaldecayand human destruction, including human and animal bones, pottery, metal work, settlement residues, seeds and pollen and so forth.
From theCambridge English Corpus
Potentially harmful organisms leaked from sewage pipes will be attenuated bynaturaldecayand dilution, thus minimising the risk to public health.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
The liability for remedying the effects ofnaturaldecayor fair wear and tear is placed upon the landlord.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
This is a result of thenaturaldecayof the ancient heartwood, which reduced the centre of the trunk down to ground level by 1770.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
He considered it critical that the instrument retain thenaturaldecayof a note rather than the sharp cut-off often experienced with an electronic synthesizer.
From
Wikipedia
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There are many reasons why people may not remember something: childhood amnesia, physical trauma, drugs or thenaturaldecayof stored information.
From
Wikipedia
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Other composers will use a sample, or recording, of the cymbal struck by a mallet with a long,naturaldecay.
From
Wikipedia
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Radon-222, anaturaldecayproduct of uranium, has been shown to be the cancer-causing agent.
From
Wikipedia
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It is largely non-rebuilt and has seennaturaldecaybut virtually no plunder for building materials.
From
Wikipedia
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The samples show no traces of anything beyondnaturaldecay.
From
Wikipedia
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In her early work, she was responsible for assessing thenaturaldecayof wood from many species.
From
Wikipedia
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She discovered that the element 85 astatine is a product of thenaturaldecayprocesses.
From
Wikipedia
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Four out of these isotopes (astatine-215, astatine-217, astatine-218, and astatine-219) are found due to their production in majornaturaldecaychains.
From
Wikipedia
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An example is thenaturaldecayof potassium-40 to the argon-40, which forms most of the argon in air.
From
Wikipedia
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Others have been destroyed by fire or bynaturaldecay.
From
Wikipedia
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It is a measure of thenaturaldecaywithin a social system.
From
Wikipedia
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Detailed photography and text revealed that the railway is still largely in good condition, despite somenaturaldecay.
From
Wikipedia
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The main isotope responsible is xenon-135, mainly produced bynaturaldecayof iodine-135.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
Want to learn more?
Go to the definition ofnatural
Go to the definition ofdecay
See other collocations withdecay