[di-send] 
| 1. | to go or pass from a higher to a lower place; move or come down: to descend from the mountaintop. |
| 2. | to pass from higher to lower in any scale or series. |
| 3. | to go from generals to particulars, as in a discussion. |
| 4. | to slope, tend, or lead downward: The path descends to the pond. |
| 5. | to be inherited or transmitted, as through succeeding generations of a family: The title descends through eldest sons. |
| 6. | to have a specific person or family among one's ancestors (usually fol. by from): He is descended from Cromwell. |
| 7. | to be derived from something remote in time, esp. through continuous transmission: This festival descends from a druidic rite. |
| 8. | to approach or pounce upon, esp. in a greedy or hasty manner (fol. by on or upon): Thrill-seekers descended upon the scene of the crime. |
| 9. | to settle, as a cloud or vapor. |
| 10. | to appear or become manifest, as a supernatural being, state of mind, etc.: Jupiter descended to humankind. |
| 11. | to attack, esp. with violence and suddenness (usually fol. by on or upon): to descend upon enemy soldiers. |
| 12. | to sink or come down from a certain intellectual, moral, or social standard: He would never descend to baseness. |
| 13. | Astronomy. to move toward the horizon, as the sun or a star. |
| 14. | to move downward upon or along; go or climb down (stairs, a hill, etc.). |
| 15. | to extend or lead down along: The path descends the hill. |
