Short for "Degenerate" the name “degen” is a play on “degenerate gambler,” which implies a certain level of intimacy with the prospects of financial ruin. However, many who are classified as degens would instead describe themselves as traders. They can “experiment,” “speculate,” or “take a calculated risk”—all without losing sleep over any potential losses.

“Degens are traders willing to go above and beyond the normal risk appetite of trading a shitcoin by putting absurd amounts of capital on the line to farm, buy or trade brand new tokens with extreme degrees of risk and even higher returns,” Cooper Turley

References

https://decrypt.co/52739/decrypts-people-of-the-year-the-defi-degens