de-crease
kris, dɪˈkris verb (used without object)
1.
to diminish or lessen in extent, quantity, strength, power, etc.: During the ten-day march across the desert their supply of water decreased rapidly.
verb (used with object)
2.
to make less; cause to diminish: to decrease one's work load.
noun
3.
the act or process of decreasing; condition of being decreased; gradual reduction: a decrease in sales; a decrease in intensity.
4.
the amount by which a thing is lessened: The decrease in sales was almost 20 percent.
Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English decres (noun), decresen (v.) < Old French decreiss-, long stem of decreistre < Latin dēcrēscere (dē- de- + crēscere to grow); see crescent
1350–1400; Middle English decres (noun), decresen (v.) < Old French decreiss-, long stem of decreistre < Latin dēcrēscere (dē- de- + crēscere to grow); see crescent
Related forms
un·de·creased, adjective
Synonyms
1. wane, lessen, fall off, decline, contract, abate. Decrease, diminish, dwindle, shrink imply becoming smaller or less in amount. Decrease commonly implies a sustained reduction in stages, especially of bulk, size, volume, or quantity, often from some imperceptible cause or inherent process: The swelling decreased daily. Diminish usually implies the action of some external cause that keeps taking away: Disease caused the number of troops to diminish steadily. Dwindle implies an undesirable reduction by degrees, resulting in attenuation: His followers dwindled to a mere handful. Shrink especially implies contraction through an inherent property under specific conditions: Many fabrics shrink in hot water. 3. abatement, decline, subsidence, shrinking, dwindling, ebbing.
1. wane, lessen, fall off, decline, contract, abate. Decrease, diminish, dwindle, shrink imply becoming smaller or less in amount. Decrease commonly implies a sustained reduction in stages, especially of bulk, size, volume, or quantity, often from some imperceptible cause or inherent process: The swelling decreased daily. Diminish usually implies the action of some external cause that keeps taking away: Disease caused the number of troops to diminish steadily. Dwindle implies an undesirable reduction by degrees, resulting in attenuation: His followers dwindled to a mere handful. Shrink especially implies contraction through an inherent property under specific conditions: Many fabrics shrink in hot water. 3. abatement, decline, subsidence, shrinking, dwindling, ebbing.
Antonyms
1. increase, expand.
1. increase, expand.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To de-crease
Collins
World English Dictionary
| decrease | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | to diminish or cause to diminish in size, number, strength, etc |
| —n | |
| 2. | the act or process of diminishing; reduction |
| 3. | the amount by which something has been diminished |
| [C14: from Old French descreistre, from Latin dēcrescere to grow less, from | |
| de'creasing | |
| —adj | |
| de'creasingly | |
| —adv | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
00:10
De-crease
is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
| a chattering or flighty, light-headed person. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
decrease
late 14c., from O.Fr. pp. stem of descreistre, from L. decrescere, from de- "away from" + crescere "to grow" (see crescent).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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