diminish

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verb di·min·ish \də-ˈmi-nish\

Definition of diminish

transitive verb
1 : to make less or cause to appear less diminish an army's strength His role in the company was diminished.
2 : to lessen the authority, dignity, or reputation of : belittle diminish a rival's accomplishments
3 architecture : to cause to taper (see ¹taper 1) a diminished column
intransitive verb
1 : to become gradually less (as in size or importance) : dwindle the side effects tend to diminish over time
2 architecture : taper

diminishable

play \-ni-shə-bəl\ adjective

diminishment

play \-mənt\ noun

See diminish defined for English-language learners

See diminish defined for kids

Examples of diminish in a Sentence

The strength of the army was greatly diminished by outbreaks of disease.
The drug's side effects should diminish over time.
Nothing could diminish the importance of his contributions.

Recent Examples of diminish from the Web

For pitchers, the win statistic may be an archaic measurement, one whose importance has diminished over the decades.

— rustin dodd, kansascity, "Royals beat Blue Jays 3-2, surpass .500 for the first time", 24 June 2017
The special representative played a diminishing role in recent years as the Afghan war faded from the headlines.

— mark landler, New York Times, "State Dept. Moves to Shut Office Planning Afghanistan Strategy", 23 June 2017
Metro believes the emergence of Uber and Lyft, paired with cheap gas and laws allowing undocumented Californians to obtain drivers licenses, contribute to the diminishing riders.

— neal broverman, Los Angeles Magazine, "Metro Hustles to Turn Bus Ridership Around With WiFi and 24-Hour Service", 23 June 2017
However, the concerns for higher winds diminished for Alabama's coastline, and it was removed from a tropical storm warning that had been in effect.

— leigh morgan, AL.com, "Update: Tropical Storm Cindy slowly closes in on Gulf Coast", 21 June 2017
Quantitative grades also diminish student interest in learning, reduce academic risk taking, and decrease the quality of thinking.

— ashley lamb-sinclair, The Atlantic, "Why Grades Are Not Paramount to Achievement", 16 June 2017
Babies born with congenital Zika syndrome often have severe microcephaly, diminished brain tissue and eye damage, as well as restricted joint movement and rigid muscle tone.

— jonel aleccia, Kaiser Health News, "Zika In America: One Mother’s Saga", 13 June 2017
The Illinois Supreme Court ruled the changes violated a state constitution provision that benefits cannot be diminished.

— claudia lauer, The Seattle Times, "Texas’s tough pension laws may not apply in other states", 10 June 2017
Buprenorphine interacts with brain receptors affected by opioid drugs like heroin, helping diminish the effects of physical dependency to these drugs, such as withdrawal symptoms and cravings.

— laura ungar, The Courier-Journal, "Here are some answers about a drug that treats addiction", 8 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'diminish'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of diminish

Middle English deminishen, alteration of diminuen, from Anglo-French diminuer, from Late Latin diminuere, alteration of Latin deminuere, from de- + minuere to lessen — more at minor

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First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

Synonym Discussion of diminish

decrease, lessen, diminish, reduce, abate, dwindle mean to grow or make less. decrease suggests a progressive decline in size, amount, numbers, or intensity. slowly decreased the amount of pressure lessen suggests a decline in amount rather than in number. has been unable to lessen her debt diminish emphasizes a perceptible loss and implies its subtraction from a total. his visual acuity has diminished reduce implies a bringing down or lowering. you must reduce your caloric intake abate implies a reducing of something excessive or oppressive in force or amount. the storm abated dwindle implies progressive lessening and is applied to things growing visibly smaller. their provisions dwindled slowly

DIMINISH Defined for English Language Learners

diminish

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verb

Definition of diminish for English Language Learners

: to become or to cause (something) to become less in size, importance, etc.
: to lessen the authority or reputation of (someone or something) : to describe (something) as having little value or importance

DIMINISH Defined for Kids

diminish

play

verb di·min·ish \də-ˈmi-nish\

Definition of diminish for Students

diminished

;

diminishing

1 : to make less or cause to seem less … he didn't want to diminish any chance he might have of being found. — Gary Paulsen, Hatchet
2 : belittle
3 : to become gradually less or smaller The number of wild birds is diminishing.