Nearby Words

descends

[dih-send] Origin

de·scend

[dih-send]
verb (used without object)
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.
EXPAND
6.
to have a specific person or family among one's ancestors (usually followed by from): He is descended from Cromwell.
7.
to be derived from something remote in time, especially through continuous transmission: This festival descends from a druidic rite.
8.
to approach or pounce upon, especially in a greedy or hasty manner (followed 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, especially with violence and suddenness (usually followed 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.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
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.

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Descends is always a great word to know.
So is lollapalooza. Does it mean:
a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.
an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.

Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English descenden < Old French descendre < Latin dēscendere, equivalent to dē- de- + -scendere, combining form of scandere to climb; compare scansion

de·scend·ing·ly, adverb
pre·de·scend, verb
re·de·scend, verb
un·de·scend·ed, adjective
un·de·scend·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To descends
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

descend
c.1300, from O.Fr. descendre, from L. descendere, from de- "down" + scandere "to climb," from PIE base *skand- "jump." Sense of "originate from" is late 14c. In typography, descender "part of a letter that extends below the body" is from 1802.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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