wind down

verb

wound down also winded down; winding down; winds down

intransitive verb

1

: to draw gradually toward an end

the party was winding down

2

: relax, unwind

wind down with a good book

transitive verb

: to cause a gradual lessening of usually with the intention of bringing to an end

Synonyms of wind down

• relax
• chill out

Examples of wind down in a Sentence

not being one for alcoholic beverages, I prefer to wind down with a cup of tea every night

Recent Examples on the Web

Wells Fargo is bullish on Live Nation Entertainment as antitrust break-up risks tied to Ticketmaster begin to wind down. —Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 25 Feb. 2026

The damage was found as Monday’s historic blizzard that brought some 20 inches of snow to the city was winding down. —Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 25 Feb. 2026

North Korea has repeatedly rejected Washington and Seoul’s calls to resume diplomacy aimed at winding down its nuclear program, which derailed in 2019 following the collapse of Kim’s second summit with Trump during the American president’s first term. —ABC News, 25 Feb. 2026

As beauty’s earnings season winds down, some clear themes for 2025 rose up. —Jennifer Weil, Footwear News, 24 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1944, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for wind down

• adown
• blowdown
• breakdown
• countdown
• crackdown
• crosstown
• downtown
• drawdown
• dropdown
• facedown
• godown
• hometown