1
as in drop
the act or process of going to a lower level or altitude
the airplane began its gradual descent to the landing field
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2
as in deterioration
a gradual sinking and wasting away of mind or body
the family patriarch's heartbreaking descent into infirmity and senility
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3
as in degradation
a change to a lower state or level
the nation's rapid descent into anarchy after the revolution
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4
as in demise
a loss of status
for throwing the game, the ballplayer underwent a huge descent in the eyes of the fans
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5
as in invasion
a sudden attack on and entrance into hostile territory
the lightning descent of the invading army on that unsuspecting border town
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6
as in attack
the act or action of setting upon with force or violence
the descent of the voracious locusts on the wheat fields
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7
as in ancestry
the line of ancestors from whom a person is descended
a person of Finnish descent
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8
as in downhill
a downward slope
on bicycle tours the ascents always seem to outnumber the descents
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of descent
Atlantic Coast Conference: Three of 18 head coaches are Black — Freeman, Virginia’s Tony Elliott and Syracuse’s Fran Brown — and Miami’s Mario Cristobal is of Cuban descent.
—
Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 6 Jan. 2025
The events of September 11 led to a nationwide surge in violence and hate crimes targeting individuals of Middle Eastern, South Asian, and Arab descent, as well as those mistakenly perceived as Muslim.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 3 Jan. 2025
The first New Year's Eve ball – made of iron and wood and decorated with 25-watt light bulbs – made its premiere descent in 1907.
—Grace Tucker, The Enquirer, 31 Dec. 2024
Though the performer, being of Puerto Rican and Guatemalan descent, hired a speech coach, an acting coach, and a movement coach, all to nail down the Cuban accent and mannerisms, the thing that served Arjona’s performance most was being around her costars.
—Marcus Jones, IndieWire, 30 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for descent 
Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 6 Jan. 2025
The events of September 11 led to a nationwide surge in violence and hate crimes targeting individuals of Middle Eastern, South Asian, and Arab descent, as well as those mistakenly perceived as Muslim.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 3 Jan. 2025
The first New Year's Eve ball – made of iron and wood and decorated with 25-watt light bulbs – made its premiere descent in 1907.
—Grace Tucker, The Enquirer, 31 Dec. 2024
Though the performer, being of Puerto Rican and Guatemalan descent, hired a speech coach, an acting coach, and a movement coach, all to nail down the Cuban accent and mannerisms, the thing that served Arjona’s performance most was being around her costars.
—Marcus Jones, IndieWire, 30 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for descent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for descent
Noun
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That compares with a bigger drop of 3.9% in November and 2.3% in October.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
13 Jan. 2025
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During the fight, four drops from the pitcher fell on Earth, in Prayagraj, Nashik, Haridwar and Ujjain, which host the festival in rotation.—
Aishwarya S Iyer,
CNN,
12 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Algorithms are used to predict patients' risk of death or deterioration, to suggest diagnoses or triage patients, to record and summarize visits to save doctors work, and to approve insurance claims.—
Darius Tahir | KFF Health News,
ABC News,
10 Jan. 2025
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The measures, which include banning the maintenance of the aircraft and the supply of new planes, are likely to continue the deterioration of Russia's aviation industry.—
Kevin Lynn,
Newsweek,
8 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Yet the devastation that Israel inflicted on Hezbollah last year, the general degradation of Iran’s militia network, and the failure of Tehran’s strategy of using Arab fighters as a forward defense against Israel and the U.S. were decisive.—
Hussein Ibish,
The Atlantic,
19 Jan. 2025
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Users could still watch and download videos, but over time, this lack of updates could cause significant degradation of the app’s performance.—
Cherie Brooke Luo,
Forbes,
17 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Jake walked us through some of the fallout from the demise, revealing that Apple TV+ viewers will be robbed of comedic turns from an all-star British cast that was set to include Jason Isaacs, Dawn French, Miranda Richardson, and Jamie and Natasia Demetriou.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
17 Jan. 2025
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Before this particular spacecraft reaches its watery demise, however, SpaceX will test a few other key objectives.—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN,
15 Jan. 2025
Noun
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The researchers had been galvanized by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, in February, 2022.—
Keith Gessen,
The New Yorker,
10 Jan. 2025
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The city is known worldwide as the site of a Russian massacre early in the 2022 invasion.—
Joanna Kakissis,
NPR,
10 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Newsom has recently come under attack by critics of his handling of the historic wildfires.—
Daniel R. Depetris,
Newsweek,
12 Jan. 2025
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The attack triggered a shutdown of parts of Change Healthcare’s electronic system, leaving doctors and other providers of medical care without the ability to get insurance approval of patient services.—
Bruce Japsen,
Forbes,
12 Jan. 2025
Noun
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There were zero traces of Mexican ancestry in Werts' analysis.—
Zoey Lyttle,
People.com,
3 Jan. 2025
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But the combination of executive orders, laws and military commands were indiscriminate and their brunt fell upon innocent Japanese Americans, who were forced into concentration camps without regard for their loyalty, only their ancestry.—
Eli Wizevich,
Smithsonian Magazine,
18 Dec. 2024
Noun
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When the 40-year-old took to the Birds of Prey course Wednesday as a forerunner on the first day of downhill training, everything felt right in her world.—
The Vail Daily,
The Denver Post,
12 Dec. 2024
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Brooks Women's Crossback 2.0 Sports Bra $65 $45 at Amazon A good sports bra is so important for downhill skiing (hello, moguls!).—
Jean Chen Smith,
Travel + Leisure,
24 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near descent
Cite this Entry
“Descent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/descent. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.
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