Showing results for "downsizing"

• present participle of downsize.

downsizing

American  

[doun-sahy-zing] / ˈdaʊnˌsaɪ zɪŋ /

noun

• downsizings
  plural

1. the act or process of reducing the number of something, such as employees or participants, usually as a cost-cutting measure.

   The company’s downsizing eliminated approximately 39% of all executive positions.

2. the act or process of replacing something larger with something smaller, such as moving into a smaller house.

   With the housing market in shambles, it would be difficult to sell our house, so downsizing is not really an option right now.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• downsizings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of downsizing

downsiz(e) ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. )

Explanation

In business, downsizing means saving money by laying off workers. Although downsizing can sometimes make a company more profitable, it also results in people losing their jobs. Downsizing is a way to make something smaller, and in the 1980s the business world started using this word to refer to the process of reducing a company's size by firing employees. Earlier, it was used by U.S. automakers to mean "producing smaller cars." And today it also means "moving into a smaller house," something people commonly do after their kids grow up and leave home: "My grandparents are downsizing — they sold their house and bought a condo."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

downsizing downsizings

Since retiring, we have settled into a slow-and-steady approach to downsizing, habitually scrutinizing drawers and closets and storage boxes anytime we open them, looking around rooms for little things to pass along.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026

Federal downsizing has waned since Elon Musk left his post last year as head of the Department of Government Efficiency.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026

The area never recovered from the yearslong downsizing and closing of the mills in the 1980s and 1990s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026

The prospect of substantial job cuts during a period of downsizing in Hollywood has ignited widespread opposition to the sale.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026

“I’m even downsizing my bed so that you can fit yours in. We picked one out today.”

From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali

In her Danbury workspace, she is surrounded by blueprints for the next wave of store refreshes, some of which include downsizings.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026

One of the biggest downsizings happened at Twitter last week, where new owner Elon Musk cut roughly half of the 7,500-member workforce, though over the weekend some workers were asked to come back.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 9, 2022

The downsizings didn’t just affect people who worked at GE.

From The Guardian ● Nov. 6, 2016

While record store closings seem as inevitable as newspaper downsizings these days, June has proved to be an especially cruel month in New York.

From New York Times ● Jun. 10, 2016

Likewise, no company will shrink, incurring job losses due to layoffs and mass firings, unless the CEO agrees to downsizings and cost reductions. 

From Forbes ● Aug. 29, 2014