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decline

[ dih-klahyn ]
/ dɪˈklaɪn /
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See synonyms for: decline / declined / declining on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), de·clined, de·clin·ing.
verb (used without object), de·clined, de·clin·ing.
noun
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Origin of decline

First recorded in 1275–1325; (verb) Middle English declinen, from Old French: “to inflect, turn aside, sink,” from Latin dēclīnāre “to slope, incline, bend”; compare Greek klī́nein “to lean” (see lean1); (noun) Middle English declin, from Old French, derivative of decliner

synonym study for decline

1. See refuse1.

OTHER WORDS FROM decline

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use decline in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for decline

decline
/ (dɪˈklaɪn) /

verb
noun

Derived forms of decline

declinable, adjectivedecliner, noun

Word Origin for decline

C14: from Old French decliner to inflect, turn away, sink, from Latin dēclīnāre to bend away, inflect grammatically
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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