as in deteriorating
to become worse or of less value
in the years following the closing of the last textile mill, the town atrophied
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of atrophying
Language skills at the department are also atrophying.
—
Byron Tau, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2026
Horvath blames educational technology (EdTech) for these atrophying skillsets, arguing that at the turn of the 21th century and through its first decade and a half, tech companies and advocates pushed a false narrative that the education system was broken, but computers could fix it.
—Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 1 Mar. 2026
Byron Tau, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2026
Horvath blames educational technology (EdTech) for these atrophying skillsets, arguing that at the turn of the 21th century and through its first decade and a half, tech companies and advocates pushed a false narrative that the education system was broken, but computers could fix it.
—Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 1 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for atrophying
Verb
-
The track shouldn’t do that The problem was a new patch of tarmac that apparently wasn’t up to scratch and started deteriorating under the cars’ tires.—
Jonathan M. Gitlin,
ArsTechnica,
8 June 2026
-
Yet many investors and strategists say foreign selling has less to do with deteriorating fundamentals and more to do with the market's own success.—
Sean Conlon,Joseph Wilkins,Tanaya Macheel,Lee Ying Shan,
CNBC,
7 June 2026
Verb
-
Photos from the local information office in General Santos City, which has about 720,000 people, showed convenience stores and buildings crumbling in the aftermath of the quake.—
Kathleen Magramo,
CNN Money,
8 June 2026
-
Those who work in Cuba’s crumbling tourism sector lamented Meliá’s announcement.—
Andrea Rodríguez,
Los Angeles Times,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
Simsbury residents have reacted with widespread opposition, largely based on concerns about overdevelopment, worsening traffic, a costly spike in school enrollments and unwelcome change to what traditionally has been a semi-rural town.—
Don Stacom,
Hartford Courant,
11 June 2026
-
At the same time, the National divide over slavery was worsening.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
11 June 2026
Verb
-
Underlying the debate is an intense competition for public school students, which has become an existential threat in an era of sharply declining enrollment, especially given the reality that school districts are funded based on enrollment.—
Howard Blume,
Los Angeles Times,
11 June 2026
-
More than a moral issue, the case risks a reputational crisis that could lead to declining sales, stock volatility, leadership instability and long-term damage to shareholder value, the organizations wrote.—
Jasmin Malik Chua,
Footwear News,
11 June 2026
Verb
-
But there was something regal about a president descending those steps, or waving from the top of them, on foreign soil.—
Ian Bogost,
The Atlantic,
12 June 2026
-
Ingredients are listed in descending order, meaning the first few ingredients make up the largest share of the food.—
Amy Brownstein,
Verywell Health,
10 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Atrophying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/atrophying. Accessed 14 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
