decrease
[ verb dih-krees; noun dee-krees, dih-krees ]
/ verb dɪˈkris; noun ˈdi kris, dɪˈkris /
verb (used without object), de·creased, de·creas·ing.
to diminish or lessen in extent, quantity, strength, power, etc.: During the ten-day march across the desert their supply of water decreased rapidly.
verb (used with object), de·creased, de·creas·ing.
to make less; cause to diminish: to decrease one's work load.
noun
the act or process of decreasing; condition of being decreased; gradual reduction: a decrease in sales; a decrease in intensity.
the amount by which a thing is lessened: The decrease in sales was almost 20 percent.
SYNONYMS FOR decrease
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Origin of decrease
synonym study for decrease
1. Decrease, diminish, dwindle, shrink imply becoming smaller or less in amount. Decrease commonly implies a sustained reduction in stages, especially of bulk, size, volume, or quantity, often from some imperceptible cause or inherent process: The swelling decreased daily. Diminish usually implies the action of some external cause that keeps taking away: Disease caused the number of troops to diminish steadily. Dwindle implies an undesirable reduction by degrees, resulting in attenuation: His followers dwindled to a mere handful. Shrink especially implies contraction through an inherent property under specific conditions: Many fabrics shrink in hot water.
OTHER WORDS FROM decrease
un·de·creased, adjectiveWords nearby decrease
decorum, decoupage, decouple, decoupling, decoy, decrease, decreasing, decreasing term insurance, decree, decree absolute, decree-law
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for decrease
British Dictionary definitions for decrease
decrease
verb (dɪˈkriːs)
to diminish or cause to diminish in size, number, strength, etc
noun (ˈdiːkriːs, dɪˈkriːs)
the act or process of diminishing; reduction
the amount by which something has been diminished
Derived forms of decrease
decreasing, adjectivedecreasingly, adverbWord Origin for decrease
C14: from Old French descreistre, from Latin dēcrescere to grow less, from de- + crescere to grow
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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