decline

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“
But the real reason for the decline is a failure of narrative.

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Definitions (54)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (15)

  1. intransitive verb To express polite refusal.
  2. intransitive verb To slope downward; descend.
  3. intransitive verb To bend downward; droop.
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Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (25)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (3)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (11)

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Examples (50)

  • It can point to the fact that the main reason for the decline is the fall in inventories. —  Crikey » Canberra Calling
  • The primary reason for the decline was a reduction in compensation associated with reduced bonus accruals and lower salaries and wages creating a variance of approximately $5 million. —  SeekingAlpha.com: Home Page
  • ` ` The main reason for the decline is the lack of consumer confidence, '' Toprak said in an interview. —  Top Stories - Google News
  • The reason for the decline was the drop in exports to Russia, traditionally a strong market for Bulgarian wine. —  SofiaEcho RSS feed
  • But the decline was a modest $7.2 billion, leaving $32.6 billion on its balance sheet at the close of its fiscal third quarter ended Aug. 31. —  Trader Mike
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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

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Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

decrease ·  increase ·  collapse ·  rise ·  gain ·  trend ·  expansion ·  loss ·  decay ·  crisis ·  destruction ·  progress

Used in the same contextWord Family

decline:   declines ·  declined ·  declining
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (3)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English declinen, from Old French decliner, from Latin dēclīnāre, to turn away, bend downward, change the form of a word : dē-, de- + -clīnāre, to lean, bend; see klei- in Indo-European roots.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (2)

  1. from Middle English declinen, declynen (= Dutch declineren = German decliniren = Danish deklinere = Swedish deklinera), from Old French decliner, French décliner = Spanish Portuguese declinar = Italian dichinare, dechinare, declinare, from Latin declinare, bend, turn aside, deflect, inflect, decline, from de, down, + clinare, bend, incline, = English lean: see cline and lean.
  2. from decline, v.
 

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/dəˈklaɪn/
by American Heritage

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