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decrement

[dek-ruh-muh nt]
noun
  1. the act or process of decreasing; gradual reduction.
  2. the amount lost by reduction.
  3. Mathematics. a negative increment.
  4. Physics. the ratio of amplitudes of a damped harmonic motion in the course of two successive oscillations.
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Origin of decrement

1475–85; < Latin dēcrēmentum, equivalent to dēcrē(tus) (see decrease) + -mentum -ment
Related formsdec·re·men·tal [dek-ruh-men-tl] /ˌdɛk rəˈmɛn tl/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for decremental

decrement

noun
  1. the act of decreasing; diminution
  2. maths a negative increment
  3. physics a measure of the damping of an oscillator, expressed by the ratio of the amplitude of a cycle to its amplitude after one period
  4. (of spectra) a sequence of related spectrum lines decaying in intensity, e.g. Balmer decay
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Word Origin

C17: from Latin dēcrēmentum, from dēcrescere to decrease
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

Word Origin and History for decremental

decrement

n.

1620s, from Latin decrementum "diminution," from stem of decrescere (see decrease).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper