decrease
verb (used without object)
to diminish or lessen in extent, quantity, strength, power, etc..
had decreased
-
past perfectof decrease.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
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.
Prices of petroleum products in June were up 15% on year, but had decreased since May, as had prices for air transport, which are particularly exposed to global prices of energy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, said Thursday that ballistic-missile attacks had decreased by 90% and drone attacks had dropped by 83% since the war began.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 7, 2026
By June, the nation’s immigrant population had decreased by more than a million, to 51.9 million — and that decline has probably continued.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 1, 2026
According to a December 2024 study published in the International Journal of Climatology, the snow cover in the Italian Alps had decreased by half in the past 100 years.
From Barron's ● Nov. 25, 2025
Compared to the normal brain, Algernons had decreased in weight and there was a general smoothing out of the cerebral convolutions as well as a deepening and broadening of brain fissures.
From "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes
