as in reducing
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
1
as in minimizing
to express scornfully one's low opinion of
tends to diminish any rival's accomplishments with snide remarks
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in decreasing
to make smaller in amount, volume, or extent
the state's blood supplies were severely diminished by the two consecutive disasters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in subsiding
to grow less in scope or intensity especially gradually
the sound of the train diminished as our distance from it increased
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 diminishing
Sean Conlon,hugh Leask, CNBC, 8 June 2026
But there is no doubt that the NAACP is right about the contradiction of people cheering the exploits of Black athletes at college programs while also cheering the diminishing of Black political representation.
—Michael Cunningham, AJC.com, 4 June 2026
Loper said many states are facing difficulties raising money for transportation and anticipate diminishing revenue from taxes on gas as efficiency continues to improve and as electric vehicles become more common.
—Alex Derosier, Twin Cities, 31 May 2026
There is a limit to how many employees a company can lay off before seeing diminishing returns.
—David Trainer, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
Others point to their own skills diminishing.
—Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 15 May 2026
With Haliburton, the Pacers are set there, so protecting a pick further into the lottery had diminishing value for Indiana.
—Jay King, New York Times, 13 May 2026
The ability to comfortably live in California has become more difficult for the average resident, as the cost of living and the dollar's diminishing value have increased over the last year, said Theresa Rutherford, president of SEIU 1020.
—Paris Barraza, USA Today, 1 May 2026
Spring-Flowering Trees To avoid removing flower buds and diminishing—or halting entirely—the annual floral show, wait to prune trees that bloom before July until they are done flowering.
—Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 1 May 2026
Ted Johnson, Deadline, 12 June 2026
Once the scene resurfaced online some ten years later, internet users leveraged the phrase as a way to distinguish those who were musically superior (who had the range) and those who were not, diminishing them regardless of their popularity.
—Dr. Marcus Collins, Forbes.com, 11 June 2026
Trooping the Colour is one of the most important events in the royal calendar with the King and Queen at its center, flanked by the Wales family and supported by an ever-diminishing group of senior working royals.
—Katie Nicholl, Vanity Fair, 11 June 2026
While those shortfalls are diminishing, any sudden expenses, including those caused by factors outside of the city’s control, could quickly add to that burden.
—Ryan MacAsero, Mercury News, 10 June 2026
The addiction medicine community, meanwhile, is abuzz about the potential paradigm shift of GLP-1s like Ozempic or Wegovy, typically used to treat diabetes or obesity, as addiction medications capable of diminishing cravings.
—Lev Facher, STAT, 10 June 2026
Voting Rights Act Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act was written to prevent states from diminishing the voting power of racial minorities by packing them into one district or spreading them out across many districts.
—Sarah D. Wire, USA Today, 8 June 2026
The swell on Saturday, which brought moderate 3-to 5-foot surf, was diminishing by the evening and into Sunday, said Sebastian Westerink, meteorologist for the National Weather Service.
—Laylan Connelly, Oc Register, 7 June 2026
This put him in the unusual position of being both an embarrassment and a hugely valuable asset to the BBC, as well as the focus of frequent criticism from the UK’s right-leaning media, most of whom have a commercial interest in diminishing the BBC.
—Matt Slater, New York Times, 4 June 2026
Noun
Brendan McDermid | Reuters Treasury yields were relatively unchanged on Monday, as investors weighed the impact from Middle East tensions and the diminishing likelihood that the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates anytime soon.
—Sean Conlon,hugh Leask, CNBC, 8 June 2026
But there is no doubt that the NAACP is right about the contradiction of people cheering the exploits of Black athletes at college programs while also cheering the diminishing of Black political representation.
—Michael Cunningham, AJC.com, 4 June 2026
Loper said many states are facing difficulties raising money for transportation and anticipate diminishing revenue from taxes on gas as efficiency continues to improve and as electric vehicles become more common.
—Alex Derosier, Twin Cities, 31 May 2026
There is a limit to how many employees a company can lay off before seeing diminishing returns.
—David Trainer, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
Others point to their own skills diminishing.
—Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 15 May 2026
With Haliburton, the Pacers are set there, so protecting a pick further into the lottery had diminishing value for Indiana.
—Jay King, New York Times, 13 May 2026
The ability to comfortably live in California has become more difficult for the average resident, as the cost of living and the dollar's diminishing value have increased over the last year, said Theresa Rutherford, president of SEIU 1020.
—Paris Barraza, USA Today, 1 May 2026
Spring-Flowering Trees To avoid removing flower buds and diminishing—or halting entirely—the annual floral show, wait to prune trees that bloom before July until they are done flowering.
—Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 1 May 2026
Verb
The delay also would push the removal into the middle of the night, diminishing the audience watching the event in person or on TV.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 12 June 2026
Once the scene resurfaced online some ten years later, internet users leveraged the phrase as a way to distinguish those who were musically superior (who had the range) and those who were not, diminishing them regardless of their popularity.
—Dr. Marcus Collins, Forbes.com, 11 June 2026
Trooping the Colour is one of the most important events in the royal calendar with the King and Queen at its center, flanked by the Wales family and supported by an ever-diminishing group of senior working royals.
—Katie Nicholl, Vanity Fair, 11 June 2026
While those shortfalls are diminishing, any sudden expenses, including those caused by factors outside of the city’s control, could quickly add to that burden.
—Ryan MacAsero, Mercury News, 10 June 2026
The addiction medicine community, meanwhile, is abuzz about the potential paradigm shift of GLP-1s like Ozempic or Wegovy, typically used to treat diabetes or obesity, as addiction medications capable of diminishing cravings.
—Lev Facher, STAT, 10 June 2026
Voting Rights Act Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act was written to prevent states from diminishing the voting power of racial minorities by packing them into one district or spreading them out across many districts.
—Sarah D. Wire, USA Today, 8 June 2026
The swell on Saturday, which brought moderate 3-to 5-foot surf, was diminishing by the evening and into Sunday, said Sebastian Westerink, meteorologist for the National Weather Service.
—Laylan Connelly, Oc Register, 7 June 2026
This put him in the unusual position of being both an embarrassment and a hugely valuable asset to the BBC, as well as the focus of frequent criticism from the UK’s right-leaning media, most of whom have a commercial interest in diminishing the BBC.
—Matt Slater, New York Times, 4 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for diminishing
Noun
-
The long answer is that Estée Lauder’s Diamond Moisturizer is hydrating (as all moisturizers should be), firming, tightening, wrinkle-reducing, age spot-fading, and texture-smoothing.—
Tamim Alnuweiri,
InStyle,
5 Jan. 2026
-
Moisturizing, soothing, and redness reducing, Erborian’s CC Cream is the ultimate cult-favorite beauty product.—
Beatrice Zocchi,
Vogue,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Three-dimensional tracking of meteors is a game changer, allowing scientists to pinpoint landing sites and retrieve meteorites rapidly after impact, minimizing contamination from our terrestrial environment.—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
12 June 2026
-
Each head has its own wiper and pad for the nozzle to sit on, minimizing oozing between swaps.—
Michael Lydick,
PC Magazine,
10 June 2026
Verb
-
Steiger's presentation also highlighted how the district has taken measures to reduce spending, like cutting off purchasing cards and decreasing non-school spending.—
Austin Horn
June 11,
Miami Herald,
11 June 2026
-
With decreasing revenue from the gas tax and increasing costs, Behrens said that over the next decade, the state will face a $216 billion shortfall.—
Ariane Lange,
Sacbee.com,
11 June 2026
Verb
-
If your garden is anything like mine, your poppies have petered out and your sages are subsiding.—
Pedro Moura,
Los Angeles Times,
1 June 2026
-
Breezy winds return on Tuesday after subsiding somewhat on Monday.—
Rachael Jay,
CBS News,
2 May 2026
Noun
-
These defects propagate through the device layers, degrading electron mobility, increasing leakage current, and shortening device reliability lifetimes.—
Aditya Jadhav,
Interesting Engineering,
8 June 2026
-
By reducing the need for time-consuming manual point-cloud tracing and data cross-referencing, the new feature helps design teams move more efficiently from raw site capture to CAD-ready drafts and architectural modeling, shortening project turnaround time and reducing manual drafting costs.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
8 June 2026
Verb
-
As the media fixates on the digital natives known as Gen Z and Gen Alpha — often dismissing them as antisocial and entitled members of society — Saturday’s celebration showed that younger generations might actually have it all under control.—
Andrea Flores,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
-
Democrats criticized Republicans for dismissing attempts at meaningful reform.—
Ximena Bustillo,
NPR,
9 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
Noun
-
Tehran blames the foreign ministry of Lebanon, particularly foreign minister Youssef Raggi, for the ‘lessening of solidarity with Iran.—
Benjamin Weinthal,
FOXNews.com,
15 May 2026
-
While appearing radical at the time, the revamping of scientific boards to include more industry representatives, the undoing of power plant rules and the lessening of enforcement hobbled but did not completely undo the agency.—
Barbara Kates-Garnick,
The Conversation,
26 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Diminishing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/diminishing. Accessed 15 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
