attrition
a reduction or decrease in numbers, size, or strength: Our club has had a high rate of attrition because so many members have moved away.
a wearing down or weakening of resistance, especially as a result of continuous pressure or harassment: The enemy surrounded the town and conducted a war of attrition.
a gradual reduction in workforce without firing or layoff of personnel, as when workers resign or retire and are not replaced.
the act of rubbing against something; friction.
a wearing down or away by friction; abrasion.
Theology. imperfect contrition.: See under contrition (def. 2).
Origin of attrition
1Other words from attrition
- at·tri·tion·al, adjective
- at·tri·tive [uh-trahy-tiv], /əˈtraɪ tɪv/, adjective
- in·ter·at·tri·tion, noun
Words Nearby attrition
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use attrition in a sentence
Some of the performance in 2020 can be attributed to the injury bug and attrition that ravaged the offensive line, and the lack of spring practice and pandemic-affected fall camp couldn’t have helped.
Oklahoma State Football Is Trying To Reach New Heights With A Familiar Game Plan | Richard Johnson | June 25, 2021 | FiveThirtyEightA permanent war of attrition will, in the long run, be hugely damaging for both sides.
Will Harry and Meghan Markle’s Baby Daughter Lead to a Royal Reconciliation? | Tom Sykes | June 6, 2021 | The Daily BeastThe brutality and attrition of cycling is, of course, what makes it so thrilling to follow, but it can also evoke the deadly days of Formula 1 in the 1960s and 1970s, which prompted drivers like Jackie Stewart to demand better safety precautions.
Our attrition rate in all the countries that we operate is half of that of the national average.
How Leena Nair, Unilever’s Head of HR, Sees the Future of Work in a Post-Pandemic World | Suyin Haynes | May 23, 2021 | TimeThere is more reason to marvel, a welcome balance to a season-long deluge of attrition and fatigue.
As this strange NBA season starts to get good, the Wizards are suddenly doing the same | Jerry Brewer | April 22, 2021 | Washington Post
It is not a decisive war, with a single, signature victory, but a war of attrition.
Pentagon Doesn’t Know How Many People It’s Killed in the ISIS War | Nancy A. Youssef | January 7, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTBut there is no consensus about what the attrition of ISIS looks like.
Pentagon Doesn’t Know How Many People It’s Killed in the ISIS War | Nancy A. Youssef | January 7, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTThe past two months have been a war of attrition between the Hong Kong government and pro-democracy protestors.
Sen. Rand Paul has called for the “attrition if not an outright elimination of the IRS.”
Following the attrition of heavy industry in the 1980s, the income gap across the United Kingdom has grown substantially.
Scotland’s ‘Yes’ Campaign and the Myth of Scottish Equality | Noah Caldwell | September 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTRiver sand is frequently used, but is not so good as pit sand on account of the particles being rubbed smooth by attrition.
When arising from rough friction or attrition, they are more commonly called abrasions.
How charming, how delightful, how inspiring is the eloquence which is kindled by the attrition of gifted minds!
Beacon Lights of History, Volume VII | John LordAnti-attrition, an′ti-at-trish′on, n. anything which counteracts attrition or friction—also figuratively.
Neither of them had the slightest traces of gangue, or vein-matter, nor of attrition in being removed from the parent beds.
Summary Narrative of an Exploratory Expedition to the Sources of the Mississippi River, in 1820 | Henry Rowe Schoolcraft
British Dictionary definitions for attrition
/ (əˈtrɪʃən) /
the act of wearing away or the state of being worn away, as by friction
constant wearing down to weaken or destroy (often in the phrase war of attrition)
Also called: natural wastage a decrease in the size of the workforce of an organization achieved by not replacing employees who retire or resign
geography the grinding down of rock particles by friction during transportation by water, wind, or ice: Compare abrasion (def. 3), corrasion
theol sorrow for sin arising from fear of damnation, esp as contrasted with contrition, which arises purely from love of God
Origin of attrition
1Derived forms of attrition
- attritional, adjective
- attritive (əˈtraɪtɪv), adjective
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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