Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words

taper off

verb

Definition of taper off

  1. :  taper housing starts tapered off in the fall

See taper off defined for kids

People Are Reading

alt-5991e113c97b3
Trending: Trump Calls Racism 'Repugnant'
time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first
Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?
alt-599492594f435
How 'Wonderful' Lost Its Sense of Wonder
video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Examples of taper off in a Sentence

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

First Known Use of taper off

1848

taper off Synonyms

Synonyms
abate, decline, de-escalate, die (away or down or out), diminish, drain (away), drop (off), dwindle, ease, ebb, fall, fall away, lessen, let up, lower, moderate, pall, phase down, ratchet (down) also rachet (down), recede, relent, remit, shrink, subside, taper, decrease, wane
Antonyms
accumulate, balloon, build, burgeon (also bourgeon), enlarge, escalate, expand, grow, increase, intensify, mount, mushroom, pick up, rise, snowball, soar, swell, wax
Related Words
compress, condense, constrict, contract; evaporate, fade (away), fritter (away), give out, melt (away), peter (out), tail (off), vanish; slacken, slow (down); alleviate, relax; flag, sink, weaken; cave (in), collapse, deflate
Near Antonyms
appear, emerge, show up; blow up, distend, elongate, lengthen

Learn More about taper off

  1. See words that rhyme with taper off Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for taper off Nglish: Translation of taper off for Spanish speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up taper off? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

perfunctory

play

done merely as a duty

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. repugnant Trump clarifies his position on racism

  2. white nationalist, white supremacist Trending in 2017

  3. bereft "Lacking something needed, wanted, or expected"

  4. impanel "To choose people to serve on a jury"

  5. cosmopolitan "Worldly"

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

taper off

Test Your Vocabulary

Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

  • time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first
  • Which came first?
True or False

Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ
Citation

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-599492594f435
How 'Wonderful' Lost Its Sense of Wonder

A case of semantic bleaching

dog-covering-face
Don't Let Reading This Be Another 'Coulda' 'Shoulda' 'Woulda'

PSA: They're three separate words.

image1458426927
Food Words for Strong Flavors

A tasting menu of vivid flavor descriptions

alt-5993066a3afad
What's the Plural of 'Maitre d''?

Use this word to confuse a French speaker.

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first
Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

Which word entered the English language first?

Take the quiz
name-more-food
Name More Food!

Test your knowledge of food vocabulary!

Take the quiz
True or False
True or False?

Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.

Take the quiz
Citation
Citation

Do you know the person or title these quotes describe?

Play the game
Examples: taper off in a Sentence