taper off

verb

tapered off; tapering off; tapers off

: taper

housing starts tapered off in the fall

Synonyms of taper off

• decrease
• diminish
• subside
• die (away or down or out)
• drain (away)
• decline
• fall away
• fall
• ease
• drop (off)

Examples of taper off in a Sentence

at this time of the year, light begins to taper off a little earlier each day

Recent Examples on the Web

Any precipitation should taper off later Monday, though clouds may linger into the evening, making for a gray day, the weather service said. — Kansas City Star, 21 Sep. 2026

As the rains tapered off and the skies cleared, Paterson's annual Dominican parade stepped off Sunday afternoon, though with a slight delay. — ABC News, 13 Sep. 2026

However, Brissett's play tapered off after he was hobbled by a knee injury. — James Boyd, New York Times, 10 Sep. 2026

Activity scheduling generally follows daily circadian rhythms, so more intensive experiences are clustered in the mornings, with a smattering in the afternoon that tapers off in time for slow sunset yoga or meditation. — Jessica Ritz, Travel + Leisure, 30 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1848, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for taper off

• cerenkov
• ashraf
• checkoff
• cutoff
• falloff
• handoff
• kickoff
• layoff
• liftoff
• markoff
• markov
• payoff

Kids Definition

taper off

verb

: to stop or lessen gradually