downward

1 of 2

adverb

down·​ward ˈdau̇n-wərd 

variants or downwards

ˈdau̇n-wərdz 

1

a

: from a higher to a lower place

b

: toward a direction that is the opposite of up

2

: from a higher to a lower condition

3

a

: from an earlier time

b

: from an ancestor or predecessor

downward

2 of 2

adjective

1

: moving or extending downward

2

: descending from a head, origin, or source

downwardly adverb

downwardness noun

Synonyms

Adverb

• below
• down
• over

Adjective

• bowed
• down
• downcast
• lowered

Examples of downward in a Sentence

Adverb

The mountain streams flow downward to the lake.

Mud covered his pants from the knees downward.

Adjective

Sales continued their downward trend.

the downward revision of an estimate

Recent Examples on the Web

Adverb

Draw a line from those two stars downward (north) and one encounters Polaris. —Jesse Emspak, Space.com, 25 Apr. 2025

These showed that a chunk was missing from the bottom of Earth’s crust beneath the volcanoes: For some reason, the bottom of the crust became heavy and dripped downward from the top part, leaving a gap. —Alexandra Witze, JSTOR Daily, 24 Apr. 2025

Adjective

Southwest border crossings were already on a downward trend when Trump took office in January, having declined throughout 2024 after a surge in 2023. —Rachel Treisman, NPR, 29 Apr. 2025

The downward trend began earlier in the year, with February arrivals down 12 percent year-over-year—the steepest decline since the COVID-19 pandemic started. —Tom Rogers, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Adverb

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing downward

• downward spiral

Kids Definition

downward

1 of 2 adverb

down·​ward ˈdau̇n-wərd 

variants or downwards

-wərdz 

1

: from a higher place or condition to a lower one

2

: from an earlier time

downward

2 of 2 adjective

: moving or reaching down

Legal Definition

downward

1 of 2 adjective

down·​ward

: going from a higher to a lower level

a downward departure from the sentencing guidelines

downward

2 of 2 adverb

: from a higher to a lower level

instead of following the sentencing guidelines, the court departed downward