descend from
phrasal verb
descended from; descending from; descends from
: to have (something or someone in the past) as an origin or source
Recent evidence supports the theory that birds descended from dinosaurs.
The plants descend from a common ancestor.
They claim to be descended from a noble British family.
Examples of descend from in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The attackers descended from the steep mountains that tower over Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan in the early morning hours.
—
Rick Noack, Washington Post, 10 Nov. 2023
But really, none of the whales around today were closely related or descended from Old Tom.
—Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 9 Nov. 2023
Members of New York City’s old guard—then known as Knickerbockers, as they were descended from the island’s original Dutch settlers who used to wear knickerbocker-style pants—had secured their boxes back in the 1850s.
—Elise Taylor, Vogue, 30 Oct. 2023
Copeland descends from the Haskells’ son Roger, while John is a descendant of their son William IV, making Matthew and Cox 11th cousins once removed.
—Nicole Briese, Peoplemag, 29 Oct. 2023
All this impressiveness descended from extremely humble beginnings.
—Seth Abramovitch, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Oct. 2023
Ramer, a redhead with a mustache, is descended from Mennonite pacifists on both sides of his family.
—Andrew Marantz, The New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2023
Many are descended from Palestinians who were left living within the borders of Israel after the country was established in 1948.
—Chantal Da Silva, NBC News, 19 Oct. 2023
Recommended The sprawling tree is beloved, towering more than 60 feet and spanning nearly an acre with aerial roots descending from its boughs.
—Ed Komenda and Audrey McAvoy, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Oct. 2023
See More
Rick Noack, Washington Post, 10 Nov. 2023
But really, none of the whales around today were closely related or descended from Old Tom.
—Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 9 Nov. 2023
Members of New York City’s old guard—then known as Knickerbockers, as they were descended from the island’s original Dutch settlers who used to wear knickerbocker-style pants—had secured their boxes back in the 1850s.
—Elise Taylor, Vogue, 30 Oct. 2023
Copeland descends from the Haskells’ son Roger, while John is a descendant of their son William IV, making Matthew and Cox 11th cousins once removed.
—Nicole Briese, Peoplemag, 29 Oct. 2023
All this impressiveness descended from extremely humble beginnings.
—Seth Abramovitch, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Oct. 2023
Ramer, a redhead with a mustache, is descended from Mennonite pacifists on both sides of his family.
—Andrew Marantz, The New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2023
Many are descended from Palestinians who were left living within the borders of Israel after the country was established in 1948.
—Chantal Da Silva, NBC News, 19 Oct. 2023
Recommended The sprawling tree is beloved, towering more than 60 feet and spanning nearly an acre with aerial roots descending from its boughs.
—Ed Komenda and Audrey McAvoy, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Oct. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'descend from.' 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 descend from
Cite this Entry
“Descend from.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/descend%20from. Accessed 29 Nov. 2023.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share