lower
1 Americanverb (used with object)
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to cause to descend; let or put down.
to lower a flag.
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to make lower in height or level.
to lower the water in a canal.
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to reduce in amount, price, degree, force, etc.
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to make less loud.
Please lower your voice.
- Synonyms:
- soften
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to bring down in rank or estimation; degrade; humble; abase (oneself), as by some sacrifice of self-respect or dignity.
His bad actions lowered him in my eyes.
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Music. to make lower in pitch; flatten.
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Phonetics. to alter the articulation of (a vowel) by increasing the distance of the tongue downward from the palate.
The vowel of “clerk” is lowered to (ä) in the British pronunciation.
verb (used without object)
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to become lower, grow less, or diminish, as in amount, intensity, or degree.
The brook lowers in early summer. Stock prices rise and lower constantly.
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to descend; sink.
the sun lowering in the west.
adjective
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comparative of low.
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of or relating to those portions of a river farthest from the source.
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(often initial capital letter) noting an early division of a period, system, or the like.
the Lower Devonian.
noun
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a denture for the lower jaw.
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a lower berth.
verb
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(esp of the sky, weather, etc) to be overcast, dark, and menacing
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to scowl or frown
noun
adjective
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being below one or more other things
the lower shelf
the lower animals
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reduced in amount or value
a lower price
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maths (of a limit or bound) less than or equal to one or more numbers or variables
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(sometimes capital) geology denoting the early part or division of a period, system, formation, etc
Lower Silurian
verb
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(tr) to cause to become low or on a lower level; bring, put, or cause to move down
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(tr) to reduce or bring down in estimation, dignity, value, etc
to lower oneself
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to reduce or be reduced
to lower one's confidence
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(tr) to make quieter
to lower the radio
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(tr) to reduce the pitch of
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(tr) phonetics to modify the articulation of (a vowel) by bringing the tongue further away from the roof of the mouth
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(intr) to diminish or become less
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of lower1
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English, comparative of low 1 (adjective)
Origin of lower2
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English verb louren “to frown, lurk”; akin to German lauern, Dutch loeren; see lurk
Explanation
To lower is to move something downward. When you go to sleep at night, you lower your head onto your pillow (unless you are a horse; in that case, you don't lower anything and sleep standing up). After cleaning your house's gutters, you'll climb down, lower the ladder, and put it away. After you've raised your hand in class and been called on, you will lower your hand again. Another way to lower something is to decrease the volume: "Will you please lower the sound on the TV? It's way too loud!" A less common meaning of lower is to scowl or glower, or to look stormy and dark.
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.
Lower courts blocked the move, citing the 14th Amendment's citizenship clause.
From Barron's • May 11, 2026
Lower Sox9 levels led to faster plaque buildup, simpler astrocyte structure and reduced ability to clear amyloid deposits.
From Science Daily • May 2, 2026
Lower sales of crude oil also dragged on the performance, it said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 30, 2026
Lower income households which use oil are due to get a £100 grant later this year.
From BBC • Apr. 30, 2026
It belongs to a Jewish family from Romania who had a small grocery store in the Old Country and then came to New York and opened another, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.
From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell
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.
