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descent - 6 dictionary results

de⋅scent

  [di-sent]
Use descent in a Sentence
–noun
1. the act, process, or fact of descending.
2. a downward inclination or slope.
3. a passage or stairway leading down.
4. derivation from an ancestor; lineage; extraction.
5. any passing from higher to lower in degree or state; decline.
6. a sudden raid or hostile attack.
7. Law. transmission of real property by intestate succession.
Origin:
1300–50; ME < AF, OF descente, deriv. of descendre to descend, modeled on such pairs as vente, vendre

Synonyms:
1. falling, sinking. 2. decline, grade, declivity. 4. ancestry, parentage. 6. assault, foray.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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de·scent   (dĭ-sěnt')   
n.  
  1. The act or an instance of descending.
  2. A way down.
  3. A downward incline or passage; a slope.
    1. Hereditary derivation; lineage: a person of African descent.
    2. One generation of a specific lineage.
    3. The fact or process of coming down or being derived from a source: a paper tracing the descent of the novel from old picaresque tales.
    4. Development in form or structure during transmission from an original source.
    1. The fact or process of coming down or being derived from a source: a paper tracing the descent of the novel from old picaresque tales.
    2. Development in form or structure during transmission from an original source.
  6. Law Transference of property by inheritance.
  7. A lowering or decline, as in status or level: Her career went into a rapid descent after the charges of misconduct.
  8. A sudden visit or attack; an onslaught.

[Middle English, from Old French, descent, from feminine past participle of descendre, to descend; see descend.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Descent

De*scent"\, n. [F. descente, fr. descendre; like vente, from vendre. See Descend.]

1. The act of descending, or passing downward; change of place from higher to lower.

2. Incursion; sudden attack; especially, hostile invasion from sea; -- often followed by upon or on; as, to make a descent upon the enemy.

The United Provinces . . . ordered public prayer to God, when they feared that the French and English fleets would make a descent upon their coasts. --Jortin.

3. Progress downward, as in station, virtue, as in station, virtue, and the like, from a higher to a lower state, from a higher to a lower state, from the more to the less important, from the better to the worse, etc.

2. Derivation, as from an ancestor; procedure by generation; lineage; birth; extraction. --Dryden.

5. (Law) Transmission of an estate by inheritance, usually, but not necessarily, in the descending line; title to inherit an estate by reason of consanguinity. --Abbott.

6. Inclination downward; a descending way; inclined or sloping surface; declivity; slope; as, a steep descent.

7. That which is descended; descendants; issue.

If care of our descent perplex us most, Which must be born to certain woe. --Milton.

8. A step or remove downward in any scale of gradation; a degree in the scale of genealogy; a generation.

No man living is a thousand descents removed from Adam himself. --Hooker.

9. Lowest place; extreme downward place. [R.]

And from the extremest upward of thy head, To the descent and dust below thy foot. --Shak.

10. (Mus.) A passing from a higher to a lower tone.

Syn: Declivity; slope; degradation; extraction; lineage; assault; invasion; attack.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : descent
Spanish: descenso,
German: der Abstieg,
Japanese: 降下
More Translations »

Main Entry: de·scent
Function: noun
: transmission or devolution of the estate of a person who has died without a valid will —compare DISTRIBUTION
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Main Entry: de·scent
Pronunciation: di-'sent
Function: noun
1 : the act or process of descending from a higher to a lower location<descent of the testes into the scrotum>
2 a : derivation from an ancestor b : the fact or process of originating by generation from an ancestralstock (as a species or genus)
3 : a former method of distillation in which the material was heated in a vessel having its outlet underneath so that the vapors produced were forcedto descend
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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descent de·scent (dĭ-sěnt')
n.

  1. The process of descending or falling down from a higher position.
  2. The passage of the presenting part of the fetus into and through the birth canal.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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