as in retrogressing
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1
as in subsiding
to grow less in scope or intensity especially gradually
the sound of sirens receded as the fire engines roared off into the distance
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in retreating
to move back or away (as from something difficult, dangerous, or disagreeable)
after the rain stops, the floodwaters should gradually recede
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of receding
Literary Hub,
16 June 2026
The film slowly sheds its main characters—receding ice, a grandfather lost, and a grandmother slipping away last.
—
Erika Owen,
Condé Nast Traveler,
16 June 2026
On June 6, a man with a slightly receding hairline walked into a beachside tattoo stand in Chennai, India, showed the proprietor a message on a phone screen, and, with video recording the whole process, settled in to get a line of text apparently tattooed across his forehead.
—
T.m. Brown,
CNN Money,
12 June 2026
Deep green hills covered in dense trees rise in the background, receding into the far distance — representing the many ways that wild land seems to thrive in this vast urban space.
—
Jessica Gelt,
Los Angeles Times,
12 June 2026
The Sagrada Familia is a global pulpit, but it's set in a country where Christianity is receding.
—
ABC News,
9 June 2026
Her portrait of residents pinched between floods and receding sea ice is a testament to their love of this vulnerable land that is their home.
—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
8 June 2026
Flood waters along Four Mile Creek are receding.
—
Nc Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
30 May 2026
However, the Serie A outfit’s hopes of signing Alisson are receding with the Merseyside club showing no willingness to sanction the departure of their long-serving No 1.
—
James Pearce,
New York Times,
29 May 2026
Verb
Stamfordham, a military veteran with a thick drooping mustache and receding hairline, sat down at his desk in Windsor Castle on April 17 and penned a note to the War Office.
—
Literary Hub,
16 June 2026
The film slowly sheds its main characters—receding ice, a grandfather lost, and a grandmother slipping away last.
—
Erika Owen,
Condé Nast Traveler,
16 June 2026
On June 6, a man with a slightly receding hairline walked into a beachside tattoo stand in Chennai, India, showed the proprietor a message on a phone screen, and, with video recording the whole process, settled in to get a line of text apparently tattooed across his forehead.
—
T.m. Brown,
CNN Money,
12 June 2026
Deep green hills covered in dense trees rise in the background, receding into the far distance — representing the many ways that wild land seems to thrive in this vast urban space.
—
Jessica Gelt,
Los Angeles Times,
12 June 2026
The Sagrada Familia is a global pulpit, but it's set in a country where Christianity is receding.
—
ABC News,
9 June 2026
Her portrait of residents pinched between floods and receding sea ice is a testament to their love of this vulnerable land that is their home.
—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
8 June 2026
Flood waters along Four Mile Creek are receding.
—
Nc Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
30 May 2026
However, the Serie A outfit’s hopes of signing Alisson are receding with the Merseyside club showing no willingness to sanction the departure of their long-serving No 1.
—
James Pearce,
New York Times,
29 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for receding
Adjective
-
Three other vehicles with human drivers then appeared to illegally pass the stopped bus.
-
The truck crossed into the eastbound lane and crashed into the stopped Kia, striking the three pedestrians, CHP said.
Noun
-
Original paint remains on the classic hanging sign, and the old store countertops were turned into dining tables, so the building’s history stays part of the space.
-
Records from the medical examiner reviewed by Entertainment Weekly listed his causes of death as sequelae of anoxic brain injury and hanging.
Verb
-
The afternoon started tough until the wind kept subsiding, and players began taking aim at flags.
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Weather service and public safety officials said the safest thing to do is to stay away from the beaches altogether until the southern swells start subsiding.
Verb
-
The nationalism is real too, but a man flying his country’s flag in a stranger’s city is not retreating into his nation.
-
Because of Oracle’s retreating stock price, Ellison has been surpassed on the world’s list of wealthiest people by Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Michael Dell.
Noun
-
Even after weeks of drying winds, the crackly leaves worked themselves into every corner and declivity.
Verb
-
Authors on the study found that COVID vaccines were roughly 55% effective in preventing hospitalizations associated with the illness and about 50% effective in decreasing trips to emergency rooms or urgent care facilities.
-
If one wanted to produce more offense by decreasing drag, mixing in some baseballs with lower seams wouldn’t hurt.
Verb
-
While conventional wisdom had long been that consumers should build up a certain level of savings — six months' worth of living expenses, for example — those who study the accounts now consider saving to be a dynamic process of paying in, withdrawing, and then replenishing.
-
The military held a similar security strip from 1985 until 2000, before withdrawing after years of steady casualties, a toll that is accumulating once again.
Noun
-
That window is shorter than most executives assume, as mental and physical declines often begin earlier than midlife, while the leader still feels fully capable and engaged.
-
The decline in energy prices is easing inflation concerns, which has helped push the 10-year Treasury yield down roughly 9 basis points.
Cite this Entry
“Receding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/receding. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
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