ratchets (down)

verb

variants also rachets (down)
present tense third-person singular of ratchet (down)
as in decreases
to grow less in scope or intensity especially gradually news stories about the kidnapping will ratchet down as the weeks go by

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for ratchets (down)
  1. decreases
  2. diminishes
  3. ebbs
  4. shrinks
  5. tapers off
  6. declines
Verb
  • The front finally moves through on Friday, but some heavy rain will still be possible early, before the chance of rain decreases into the weekend.
    — Michael Autovino, CBS News, 29 Sep. 2026
  • The Nebraska researchers also found that hafnia becomes more stable as its thickness decreases.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of decreases
Verb
  • When the quantum of color deposited by the brush diminishes, and grows lighter, its essence as paint applied by brush reveals itself.
    — Barry Schwabsky, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026
  • The impressive density of this overload, which embraces the possibilities of relatively new technology to find novel ways to deliver and compress context, diminishes as Carter is drawn to Japan by Izumi Adachi (Kiko Mizuhara).
    — Vadim Rizov, Variety, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of diminishes
Verb
  • The district’s cash on hand naturally ebbs and flows depending on when revenue arrives, but repeated Cook County property tax delays last year have deepened the problem.
    — Kate Perez, Chicago Tribune, 25 June 2026
  • Participation ebbs and flows with the economy, dropping to 35 million in 2019.
    — Bart Jansen, USA Today, 19 June 2026
Definition of ebbs
Verb
  • In this technique the GPU renders a game at a resolution higher than the one being displayed and then shrinks the image to the target resolution.
    — Aman Kumar, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Higher utility prices mean higher production costs, which in turn lead to higher prices for the end customer and fuel inflation—a force that ultimately shrinks all of our wallets.
    — Adrian Stelmach, Forbes.com, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of shrinks
Verb
  • Activity scheduling generally follows daily circadian rhythms, so more intensive experiences are clustered in the mornings, with a smattering in the afternoon that tapers off in time for slow sunset yoga or meditation.
    — Jessica Ritz, Travel + Leisure, 30 Aug. 2026
  • If gravel tapers off at the edges of your garden, weeds will easily find their way into the soil below and germinate.
    — Teresa Woodard, Midwest Living, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of tapers off
Verb
  • The companies offered more customer assurances in July, alongside more service protections that would enable customers to obtain temporary access to alternative rail services in the event of performance declines.
    — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Bottura, who declines cooking at most food events nowadays, was driving when Gelb called to invite him to Utah and Las Vegas.
    — Melinda Sheckells, HollywoodReporter, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of declines
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.

Browse Nearby Words

ratcheting (up)
ratchets (down)
ratchets (up)
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Cite this Entry

“Ratchets (down).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ratchets%20%28down%29. Accessed 2 Oct. 2026.

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