dwindle
Americanverb (used without object)
-
dwindles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dwindled,
past participle, past
-
dwindling
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
dwindles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dwindled,
past participle, past
-
dwindling
present participle
verb
Synonym Usage
See decrease.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
dwindlesimple
-
dwindlessimple
-
have dwindledperfect
-
has dwindledperfect
-
am dwindlingprogressive
-
are dwindlingprogressive
-
is dwindlingprogressive
-
have been dwindlingperfect progressive
-
has been dwindlingperfect progressive
Past
-
dwindledsimple
-
had dwindledperfect
-
was dwindlingprogressive
-
were dwindlingprogressive
-
had been dwindlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dwindle
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
Explanation
What do love, money, and the earth all have in common? All can dwindle, or shrink away, if we don't handle them properly. The word dwindle has a wonderfully descriptive, almost childlike sound to it, as though it belongs in a nursery rhyme. That might help you remember the meaning, which is to shrink away gradually, like the Cheshire Cat in "Alice in Wonderland," who dwindles away until nothing is left but his grin.
Vocabulary lists containing dwindle
List 2
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "D"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
And as landslides sever access roads and supplies dwindle in several parts of the island, there are growing concerns about how much longer survivors can hold out.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
The regime’s strategic and ideological self-importance will necessarily dwindle.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
While check usage has continued to dwindle, experts say they still have a foothold in the modern economy.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026
But as funding from cap-and-invest and the climate bond dwindle, the state must increasingly turn to Cal Fire, which devotes only a small portion of its budget to mitigation work.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 30, 2026
Gradually, our numbers begin to dwindle, and it’s just me and Uriah and Drew.
From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth
But chances of finding anyone alive beneath deep rubble dwindles rapidly after a critical 72-hour window for rescuing trapped people.
From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026
But a lack of seeds and other food for mice might mean that prey dwindles over time.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
As time dwindles, the Internal Revenue Service has received over 1 million fewer income-tax returns compared to the same point a year ago.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 9, 2026
“We know that February on, our export pace for soybeans dwindles to zero,” Roose said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 14, 2026
The tunnel I’m in dwindles to two feet, and I turn back.
From "On the Far Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
Yet in recent years, Igwe says he and other residents became worried when they noticed outsiders arriving to hunt the birds and vulture numbers dwindled.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
As those policies have dwindled, the clearing yield must rise to attract other buyers.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
That also means the potential for surprise has dwindled, too.
From Salon ● Jul. 31, 2026
Free cash flow, which exceeded $12 billion in the first quarter, dwindled to less than $784 million, although it didn’t descend into negative territory as analysts had forecast.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
It presented a face of definite elegance to the street, although behind that wings and ells dwindled quickly in formality until the house ended in a big plain barn.
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
I asked Dan whether he meant dwindling in health or popularity.
From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026
Struggling German sports car maker Porsche plans to end production of the Taycan, its flagship fully electric model, by 2030 after steadily dwindling sales, a report said Thursday.
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
The family must grapple with a dwindling stockpile of resources and the mysterious “threat” that keeps them trapped inside the home, the statement read.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
That is an indication that the U.S. might not need to generate that many jobs to keep up with a dwindling supply of new workers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026
All that remained was a dwindling light astern, and soon enough that would be gone as well.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
