dwindle

[ dwin-dl ]
See synonyms for: dwindledwindleddwindling on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),dwin·dled, dwin·dling.
  1. to become smaller and smaller; shrink; waste away: His vast fortune has dwindled away.

  2. to fall away, as in quality; degenerate.

verb (used with object),dwin·dled, dwin·dling.
  1. to make smaller and smaller; cause to shrink: Failing health dwindles ambition.

Origin of dwindle

1
1590–1600; dwine (now dial.) to waste away (Middle English; Old English dwīnan; cognate with Middle Dutch dwīnen to languish, Old Norse dvīna to pine away) + -le

synonym study For dwindle

1. See decrease.

Other words for dwindle

Opposites for dwindle

Other words from dwindle

  • un·dwin·dling, adjective

Words Nearby dwindle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use dwindle in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dwindle

dwindle

/ (ˈdwɪndəl) /


verb
  1. to grow or cause to grow less in size, intensity, or number; diminish or shrink gradually

Origin of dwindle

1
C16: from Old English dwīnan to waste away; related to Old Norse dvīna to pine away

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