as in bowing
bending downward or forward
with descending heads the mourners made their way to the burial site
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in falling
to lead or extend downward
the pathway descends to the river bank
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in deteriorating
to become worse or of less value
the order of the classroom descended into chaos when the teacher left the room
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in plunging
to go to a lower level especially abruptly
leaves slowly descended from the branches in the gentle autumn wind wait for the elevator to descend
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4
as in dismounting
to come down from something (as a vehicle)
the driver descended from the truck's cab, dreading to see what he had hit
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of descending
Roger Naylor, AZCentral.com, 8 Nov. 2025
The Senate’s negotiations on reopening the government are descending into another impasse.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 7 Nov. 2025
Images of public health workers on river boats and army helicopters full of nurses descending on indigenous villages were often used in official propaganda to promote the nation’s prowess as a global leader on immunization.
—Adriana Brasileiro, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
In Earth orbit, debris can drift through space for decades, gradually descending because of atmospheric drag before finally experiencing a fiery reentry.
—Humberto Basilio, Scientific American, 7 Nov. 2025
Some thrilling dive spots include Anchor Reef which has an impressive black coral garden and Bat Cave, a 250-year-old sandstone tunnel where divers can view hundreds of bats on the roof of the cave before descending.
—Adrienne Jordan, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
Getting there involves a short cliffside hike—pause at the top for the postcard view of the Dois Irmãos peaks—before descending a rocky path.
—Carla Vianna, Travel + Leisure, 5 Nov. 2025
Without conceding much, Washington could stop cross-strait antagonisms from descending further and create room for a better trajectory to emerge.
—Stephen Wertheim, Foreign Affairs, 28 Oct. 2025
Two men, one wearing a yellow vest and a black face covering, and a second wearing all black and a motorbike helmet, can be seen in the video quickly descending in the lift positioned at the side of the museum.
—Zacharie Petit, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2025
Verb
The trail stays level early on and crosses the road a couple of times before descending through a grove of Arizona cypress to a shallow drainage.
—Roger Naylor, AZCentral.com, 8 Nov. 2025
The Senate’s negotiations on reopening the government are descending into another impasse.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 7 Nov. 2025
Images of public health workers on river boats and army helicopters full of nurses descending on indigenous villages were often used in official propaganda to promote the nation’s prowess as a global leader on immunization.
—Adriana Brasileiro, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
In Earth orbit, debris can drift through space for decades, gradually descending because of atmospheric drag before finally experiencing a fiery reentry.
—Humberto Basilio, Scientific American, 7 Nov. 2025
Some thrilling dive spots include Anchor Reef which has an impressive black coral garden and Bat Cave, a 250-year-old sandstone tunnel where divers can view hundreds of bats on the roof of the cave before descending.
—Adrienne Jordan, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
Getting there involves a short cliffside hike—pause at the top for the postcard view of the Dois Irmãos peaks—before descending a rocky path.
—Carla Vianna, Travel + Leisure, 5 Nov. 2025
Without conceding much, Washington could stop cross-strait antagonisms from descending further and create room for a better trajectory to emerge.
—Stephen Wertheim, Foreign Affairs, 28 Oct. 2025
Two men, one wearing a yellow vest and a black face covering, and a second wearing all black and a motorbike helmet, can be seen in the video quickly descending in the lift positioned at the side of the museum.
—Zacharie Petit, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for descending
Verb
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Yet in practice, America is now collecting billions from importers, much of it falling on carbon-intensive goods and places.—
Newsweek Staff,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
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Try to find a place that will block blowing or falling debris.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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In the last 28 years, Alaska's rural school districts have made close to 1,800 requests to the state for money to maintain and repair deteriorating schools, but only 14% of those requests have been approved.—
Emily Schwing,
NPR,
10 Nov. 2025
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Fiserv attributed its slowing growth to Argentina’s deteriorating economic environment, as the country last year contributed 10 percentage points to Fiserv’s 16% organic growth rate.—
Pia Singh,
CNBC,
8 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The years of horrific violence have weakened Sudan, plunging its institutions into chaos and making its population more vulnerable and poorer.—
Ivana Kottasová,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
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Elon Musk turned off many potential buyers of his Tesla cars and sent sales plunging with his foray into politics.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The new cleat should be particularly appealing to racers – who need to snap back in as quickly as possible after dismounting – and to riders who are intimidated by the learning curve involved in using clipless pedals for the first time.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
28 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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James O’Donoghue, a planetary scientist with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, likened our planet’s tilting phenomenon to a nodding head.—
Aylin Woodward,
WSJ,
21 Dec. 2021
Verb
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That’s especially true of the Princeton museum, a jangling grid of gray concrete boxes set into the sloping campus.—
Justin Davidson,
Curbed,
3 Nov. 2025
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The quick loss of water is even more evident in areas with banks, sloping lawns, and those with lots of hardscaping like walkways.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
18 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The ensuing 2022-23 season saw Rayo beat both Barca and Madrid when Spain’s big two came to their crumbling Estadio Vallecas.—
Dermot Corrigan,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
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Frank’s crew rolls into the crumbling squat that is Colombian HQ, sporting body armor and flamethrowers.—
Noel Murray,
Vulture,
9 Nov. 2025
Verb
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His true self comes tumbling out in between every lie, and that’s because Macfadyen makes sure of it.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
6 Nov. 2025
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Each match consists of three rounds of competition, with rounds one and two featuring cheerleading skills including stunts, basket tosses, and tumbling in head-to-head, bracket-style rounds.—
Peter White,
Deadline,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Descending.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/descending. Accessed 17 Nov. 2025.
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