dwindle

verb

dwin·​dle ˈdwin-dᵊl 

dwindled; dwindling ˈdwin-(d)liŋ 

-dᵊl-iŋ

intransitive verb

: to become steadily less : shrink

Their savings dwindled to nothing.

a dwindling population

transitive verb

: to make steadily less

Synonyms of dwindle

• reduce
• decrease
• diminish
• deplete

Choose the Right Synonym for dwindle

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

Examples of dwindle in a Sentence

Our energy dwindled as the meeting dragged on.

The town's population is dwindling away.

Recent Examples on the Web

Once operating with a staff of hundreds, La Opinión‘s staff has dwindled down to 50 full-time employees and freelancers. — Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026

The most interesting story of the week, in our view, is a deep dive by Stephen Clark, linked below, into the dwindling fortunes of United Launch Alliance. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 18 Sep. 2026

After years in which new houses commanded price premiums — between 2010 and 2019, new homes cost an average of $66,000 more than existing ones — the gap has been dwindling. — Lew Sichelman, Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2026

While Mamdani vowed to reinsert the neighborhood, some argued that the omission accurately reflected the dwindling number of Italians living along Mulberry Street. — Clare Whitton, The Conversation, 17 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

probably frequentative of dwine to waste away, from Middle English, from Old English dwīnan; akin to Old Norse dvīna to pine away, deyja to die — more at die

First Known Use

1596, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Rhymes for dwindle

• brindle
• grindal
• grindle
• kindle
• spindle
• swindle
• windle
• rekindle

Kids Definition

dwindle

verb

dwin·​dle ˈdwin-dᵊl 

dwindled; dwindling ˈdwin-dliŋ 

-dᵊliŋ

: to make or become less