1
as in reverting
to go back to a previous and usually lower state or level
in extreme circumstances, people sometimes regress to the behavior they exhibited in childhood
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in deteriorating
to become worse or of less value
the annual celebration has regressed to the point where it's nothing more than an excuse to get drunk
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of regressing
Daniel Depetris,
Chicago Tribune,
2 June 2026
This shifts hair follicles from regressing into active growth.
—
Deena Zaidi,
CNBC,
28 May 2026
Rafa Leao and Christian Pulisic were unsustainably clinical in the first half of the season, before regressing to the mean in a side bereft of chance creation in the second half of the campaign.
—
James Horncastle,
New York Times,
12 May 2026
And when Varley returns to Portia after a stint with the manipulative and tempestuous Lady Penwood (Katie Leung), that’s not Bridgerton simply regressing to a status quo.
—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
3 Mar. 2026
Spoelstra’s latest challenge to Ware came in mid-January, calling him out for regressing after his strong November stretch.
—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
31 Jan. 2026
Teachers at Sophia’s school told her parents that her reading skills were regressing, prompting them to order her glasses and schedule what seemed like routine tests.
—
Toria Sheffield,
PEOPLE,
17 Jan. 2026
In the face of that reality—the death, functionally, of the American dream—millennials, Gen Zers and Gen Alphaers have started fantasizing about the abolition of money, of technology, of progress entirely, to the point of dreaming about regressing away from humanity itself.
—
Hazlitt,
3 Dec. 2025
With this loss, Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes dropped to 3-9 on the season — significantly regressing compared to last year's 9-4 finish.
—
Matt Audilet,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Nov. 2025
Verb
While the Colombia of 2026 is nowhere near as deadly as the Colombia of the 1990s, when the FARC was ruling over swaths of the country, the South American nation is nevertheless regressing in terms of security.
—
Daniel Depetris,
Chicago Tribune,
2 June 2026
This shifts hair follicles from regressing into active growth.
—
Deena Zaidi,
CNBC,
28 May 2026
Rafa Leao and Christian Pulisic were unsustainably clinical in the first half of the season, before regressing to the mean in a side bereft of chance creation in the second half of the campaign.
—
James Horncastle,
New York Times,
12 May 2026
And when Varley returns to Portia after a stint with the manipulative and tempestuous Lady Penwood (Katie Leung), that’s not Bridgerton simply regressing to a status quo.
—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
3 Mar. 2026
Spoelstra’s latest challenge to Ware came in mid-January, calling him out for regressing after his strong November stretch.
—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
31 Jan. 2026
Teachers at Sophia’s school told her parents that her reading skills were regressing, prompting them to order her glasses and schedule what seemed like routine tests.
—
Toria Sheffield,
PEOPLE,
17 Jan. 2026
In the face of that reality—the death, functionally, of the American dream—millennials, Gen Zers and Gen Alphaers have started fantasizing about the abolition of money, of technology, of progress entirely, to the point of dreaming about regressing away from humanity itself.
—
Hazlitt,
3 Dec. 2025
With this loss, Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes dropped to 3-9 on the season — significantly regressing compared to last year's 9-4 finish.
—
Matt Audilet,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for regressing
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.
Verb
-
At least Mercedes is reverting back to screwing things together rather than gluing things in a back-to-basics manufacturing push.
-
The state is reverting some districts to older lines that are more favorable to Republicans.
Verb
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That enables Cadence’s system, which is supervised by physicians, to alert a clinician when a patient is deteriorating before a stroke or heart attack, for example.
-
By the time the kids make it to the Gullet, the situation is deteriorating.
Verb
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The Mets’ shortstop, playing in only his third game back since returning from a calf strain, hit a game-tying, two-run triple off Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Alan Rangel in the sixth inning, breathing new life into the beleaguered team.
-
The Trailblazers are already armed with the best two returning players from Orange County transferring to the school.
Verb
-
The film’s core narrative was that climate change is driving ever-worsening disasters, such as floods, droughts, storms and wildfires.
-
The drone attacks are worsening fuel shortages, with people reporting rising prices and long queues at the filling stations.
Verb
-
In the temple's crumbling courtyard, little remains… mostly empty pedestals scattered among the Sralao trees.
-
This medieval village was built onto a cliff overlooking the sea, where you can get lost in the narrow lanes among crumbling buildings with laundry dangling on clotheslines.
Verb
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With only a week of freedom under his belt, Cribbs said Powell is declining interviews for now, reentering the world with some trepidation.
-
Investors must focus on forward-looking changes and a clear path for value realization, understanding that a declining stock isn't safer if its intrinsic value falls faster.
Verb
-
Brigitte Chevalier built Domaine de Cébène around that principle, choosing north-facing parcels beneath mountains rising to 1,100 meters, where descending cool air pushes her harvest as much as two weeks later than vineyards on the coast 40 kilometers away.
-
The steeply descending main street of Haworth is filled with tea shops, pubs and stores clearly dedicated to pleasing Brontë pilgrims, but its basic form, including the original stationery store where the sisters once bought their paper, remains the same.
Cite this Entry
“Regressing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/regressing. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
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