ascendancy
noun
Did you know?
In the course of a year, the sun appears to pass through the twelve constellations of the zodiac in sequence, and all the planets also lie close to the solar path. The constellation and planet that are just rising, or ascendant, above the eastern horizon in the sun's path at the moment of a child's birth are said by astrologers to exercise a lifelong controlling influence over the child. This is the idea that lies at the heart of ascendancy, though the word today no longer hints at supernatural powers.
Synonyms
Examples of ascendancy in a Sentence
Christian Schneider, National Review, 21 Dec. 2023
The exhilarating recap of the Voice’s ascendancy — the story of the Village newspaper that could — takes a mournful turn as witnesses of the wreckage offer their differing autopsies of a storied alternative weekly’s destruction.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2024
Last year’s team entered the postseason on the ascendancy.
—Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Mar. 2024
The accelerated ascendancy of artificial intelligence has created a booming new tech sector offering plentiful opportunities for growth.
—Jack Kelly, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024
Russia appears to be on the ascendancy, having secured the latest major battlefield victory, but Ukrainian fighters have exceeded military expectations with their doggedness in the past, and may do so again.
—Tara Sonenshine, The Conversation, 26 Feb. 2024
Thus, Iranian rulers’ foremost strategic goal: The U.S. must be ejected from the Middle East, and Israel destroyed, to ensure Iranian ascendancy.
—Seth Cropsey, National Review, 10 Feb. 2024
Ice Spice, Jack Harlow, and Lil Nas X, for instance, owe their ascendancy to social media.
—John Seabrook, The New Yorker, 29 Jan. 2024
The social media space has become fragmented with the ascendancy of alternatives including Substack, Telegram, Threads and Rumble as viable spaces for political actors and extreme content.
—Brandy Zadrozny, NBC News, 18 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ascendancy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near ascendancy
Cite this Entry
“Ascendancy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ascendancy. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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ascendancy
noun
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