atrophying

verb

present participle of atrophy
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 The Jersey boys had been sidelined from touring since 2022 after frontman Jon Bon Jovi was diagnosed with an atrophying vocal cord. — Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 8 July 2026 What is your advice for people who are trying to either develop or redevelop this atrophying muscle of curiosity and attention? — Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 26 June 2026 And to society, the implications of such blatant cronyism could be sweeping, from atrophying regulation and loss of accountability to further concentration of power and money among the wealthiest people on Earth. — Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 18 June 2026 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for atrophying
  1. deteriorating
  2. crumbling
  3. worsening
  4. declining
  5. descending
Verb
  • The conditions for Palestinians living in the West Bank are deteriorating rapidly.
    — Michael Robbins, Foreign Affairs, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Park advocates have long argued that the existing city allocation is inadequate, leaving neighborhoods with decaying recreation centers, deteriorating swimming pools and filthy park bathrooms.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of deteriorating
Verb
  • The book describes trips to the archive, and then off into the ruins of the asylum, which were crumbling and also being turned into condominiums.
    — Robert Sullivan, Vogue, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Add the chicken, garlic powder, and chili powder and cook for 6 minutes, crumbling the meat with the back of a spoon or a potato masher (see note below), until browned.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of crumbling
Verb
  • Police have not revealed a motive for the attack, but court records exposed months of discord that appeared to be worsening.
    — Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 30 Sep. 2026
  • The case accused school officials of unreasonably exposing McNair to the risk of heatstroke, failing to recognize the initial symptoms and inadequately providing medical care and treatment, thus worsening McNair’s condition.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of worsening
Verb
  • Local officials and school leaders have linked the shortage of family housing to declining enrollment in the Davis Joint Unified School District, which is weighing school closures.
    — Daniel Lempres, Sacbee.com, 1 Oct. 2026
  • And the Civilian Oversight Commission filed suit against the department in June for declining to provide certain records related to three cases of use of force the commission issued subpoenas for in February 2025.
    — Connor Sheets, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of declining
Verb
  • The unrest was followed by sustained opposition to government efforts to house asylum seekers in communities across the country, with some protests also descending into violent clashes.
    — Michael Dorgan, FOXNews.com, 30 Sep. 2026
  • The FlyDubai flight traveling from the United Arab Emirates to Israel landed safely after issuing an emergency alert and abruptly descending thousands of feet (meters).
    — Samy Magdy, Fortune, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of descending

Browse Nearby Words

atrophy
atrophying
at sea
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Atrophying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/atrophying. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All