declined; declining
1
: to become less in amount
The price of the stock declined.
2
: to tend toward an inferior state or weaker condition
his health declined
Employee morale declined after the layoffs.
3
: to withhold consent
We invited him but he declined.
4
a
of a celestial body
: to sink toward setting
the declining sun
b
: to draw toward a close : wane
the day declined
5
a
: to slope downward : descend
b
: to bend down : droop
… eyes … declining toward the ground …—
Henry Fielding
Henry Fielding
c
: to stoop (see stoop entry 1 sense 3b) to what is unworthy
… the direful shameful state Adam declined into …—Edward Taylor
Edward Taylor6
archaic
: to turn from a straight course : stray
1
a
: to refuse especially courteously
decline an invitation
declined to give her name to the reporter
b
: to refuse to undertake, undergo, engage in, or comply with
decline battle
2
grammar
: to give in prescribed order the grammatical forms of (a noun, pronoun, or adjective)
decline the Latin adjective "brevis"
3
: to cause to bend or bow downward
… the clover … declines its blooms.—W. C. Bryant
W. C. Bryant1
: the process of declining:
a period of economic decline
a decline in the local bird population
a
: a gradual physical or mental sinking and wasting away
experiencing a mental decline
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
built on a slight decline
4
: a wasting disease
especially
: pulmonary tuberculosis
Examples of decline in a Sentence
Verb
The construction of new houses declined five percent this year.
The animal's numbers are declining rapidly.
My grandmother's health has been declining since she broke her hip.
The civilization began to decline around 1000 B.C.
The company declined comment on the scandal.
He changed his mind and declined the company's offer.
I invited him, but he declined.
Noun
a period of economic decline
He says that American industry is in a state of decline.
The town fell into decline after the factory closed down.
The economy experienced a decline of two million jobs.
We saw a sharp decline in sales this month.
Declines led advances at the end of the trading day.
There was some decline in stock prices at the end of the trading session.
Recent Examples on the Web
Geoff Colvin, Fortune, 31 Oct. 2025
The documents contained details of disciplinary action and indicated that Sherrill was prohibited from participating in her 1994 graduation ceremony after declining to identify classmates implicated in a cheating incident.
—Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
Lex Goldstein, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
Blank sailings have only gotten more prevalent as ocean carriers aimed to stop months of declines in freight rates after a softer-than-usual peak shipping season.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for decline
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Verb
No Buffett, no premium Since Warren Buffett announced his retirement from Berkshire Hathaway its stock has declined 11% in a period when the S&P 500 rose 20%.
—Geoff Colvin, Fortune, 31 Oct. 2025
The documents contained details of disciplinary action and indicated that Sherrill was prohibited from participating in her 1994 graduation ceremony after declining to identify classmates implicated in a cheating incident.
—Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
Noun
Since hip-hop hit a market peak in 2020, it's been a slow decline ever since, the outlet reports.
—Lex Goldstein, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
Blank sailings have only gotten more prevalent as ocean carriers aimed to stop months of declines in freight rates after a softer-than-usual peak shipping season.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for decline
Cite this Entry
“Decline.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/decline. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
decline
1 of 2 verb
de·cline
di-ˈklīn 
declined; declining
1
a
: to slope downward : descend
b
: to bend down
declined his head
2
: to pass toward a lower state or level
his health declined
their enthusiasm declined
3
: to draw toward a close : wane
the day declined
4
: to become less in amount
prices declined
5
a
: to show unwillingness to accept, do, engage in, or agree to
declined to run for a second term
b
: to refuse especially courteously
declined the offer
6
: to give the declension of a noun, pronoun, or adjective
decline
2 of 2 noun1
: the process of declining:
a
: a gradual sinking and wasting away
b
: a change to a lower state or level
2
: the time when something is approaching its end
an empire in decline
3
: a downward slope
Medical Definition
decline
1 of 2 intransitive verb
de·cline
di-ˈklīn
declined; declining
: to tend toward an impaired state or a weaker condition
decline
2 of 2 noun1
: the process of declining
especially
: a gradual physical or mental sinking and wasting away
2
: the period during which the end of life is approaching
3
: a wasting disease
especially
: pulmonary tuberculosis
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