decline

decline
I. verb (declined; declining) Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French decliner, from Latin declinare to turn aside, inflect, from de- + clinare to incline — more at lean Date: 14th century intransitive verb 1. archaic to turn from a straight course ; stray 2. a. to slope downward ; descend b. to bend down ; droop c. to stoop to what is unworthy 3. a. of a celestial body to sink toward setting b. to draw toward a close ; wane <
the day declined
>
4. to tend toward an inferior state or weaker condition <
his health declined
>
<
morale declined
>
5. to withhold consent 6. to become less in amount <
prices declined
>
transitive verb 1. to give in prescribed order the grammatical forms of (a noun, pronoun, or adjective) 2. obsolete a. avert b. avoid 3. to cause to bend or bow downward 4. a. to refuse to undertake, undergo, engage in, or comply with <
decline battle
>
b. to refuse especially courteously <
decline an invitation
>
declinable adjectivedecliner noun Synonyms: decline, refuse, reject, repudiate, spurn mean to turn away by not accepting, receiving, or considering. decline often implies courteous refusal especially of offers or invitations <
declined his party's nomination
>
. refuse suggests more positiveness or ungraciousness and often implies the denial of something asked for <
refused to lend them the money
>
. reject implies a peremptory refusal by sending away or discarding <
rejected the manuscript as unpublishable
>
. repudiate implies a casting off or disowning as untrue, unauthorized, or unworthy of acceptance <
teenagers who repudiate the values of their parents
>
. spurn stresses contempt or disdain in rejection or repudiation <
spurned his overtures of friendship
>
. II. noun Date: 14th century 1. the process of declining: a. a gradual physical or mental sinking and wasting away b. a change to a lower state or level <
the decline of the aristocracy
>
2. the period during which something is deteriorating or approaching its end <
an empire in decline
>
3. a downward slope 4. a wasting disease; especially pulmonary tuberculosis Synonyms: see deterioration

New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.

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  • Decline — De*cline , n. [F. d[ e]clin. See {Decline}, v. i.] 1. A falling off; a tendency to a worse state; diminution or decay; deterioration; also, the period when a thing is tending toward extinction or a less perfect state; as, the decline of life; the …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Decline — is a change over time from previously efficient to inefficient organizational functioning, from previously rational to non rational organizational and individual decision making, from previously law abiding to law violating organizational and… …   Wikipedia

  • Decline — De*cline , v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Declined}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Declining}.] [OE. declinen to bend down, lower, sink, decline (a noun), F. d[ e]cliner to decline, refuse, fr. L. declinare to turn aside, inflect (a part of speech), avoid; de + clinare …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Decline — De*cline , v. t. 1. To bend downward; to bring down; to depress; to cause to bend, or fall. [1913 Webster] In melancholy deep, with head declined. Thomson. [1913 Webster] And now fair Phoebus gan decline in haste His weary wagon to the western… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • decline — vb Decline, refuse, reject, repudiate, spurn are comparable when they mean to turn away something or someone by not consenting to accept, receive, or consider it or him. Decline is the most courteous of these terms and is used chiefly in respect… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • decline — [n1] lessening abatement, backsliding, comedown, cropper*, decay, decrepitude, degeneracy, degeneration, descent, deterioration, devolution, diminution, dissolution, dive, downfall, downgrade, downturn, drop, dwindling, ebb, ebbing, enfeeblement …   New thesaurus

  • decline — [dē klīn′, diklīn′] vi. declined, declining [ME declinen < OFr decliner, to bend, turn aside < L declinare, to bend from, inflect < de , from (see DE ) + clinare, to bend: see LEAN1] 1. to bend, turn, or slope downward or aside 2. a) …   English World dictionary

  • decline — I noun abatement, act of crumbling, act of dwindling, act of falling away, act of lessening, act of losing ground, act of shrinking, act of slipping back, act of wasting away, act of weakening, act of worsening, atrophy, backward step, cheapening …   Law dictionary

  • décliné — ⇒DÉCLINÉ, ÉE, part. passé et adj. I. Part. passé de décliner1. II. Adj. Qui s écarte d une direction donnée. A. [En parlant d un astre] Qui retombe après avoir atteint son point culminant. Les feux des soleils déclinés (RÉGNIER, Prem. poèmes,… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • décliné — décliné, ée (dé kli né, née) part. passé. 1°   Fléchi suivant les règles de la déclinaison. Un mot décliné. 2°   Terme de procédure. Dont on n accepte pas la compétence. Cette juridiction déclinée par les parties.    Par extension, refusé. Une… …   Dictionnaire de la Langue Française d'Émile Littré

  • decline — ► VERB 1) become smaller, weaker, or less in quality or quantity. 2) politely refuse. 3) (especially of the sun) move downwards. 4) Grammar form (a noun, pronoun, or adjective) according to case, number, and gender. ► NOUN ▪ a gradual and… …   English terms dictionary

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