retrograding

verb

present participle of retrograde
as in deteriorating
to become worse or of less value the Dark Ages, the period following the fall of the Roman Empire when Western civilization seriously retrograded

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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 retrograding Among these were melodic concepts like inversion (flipping a tune), transposition (shifting it up or down scales), retrograding (reversal), and translation (movement over time). — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 19 Feb. 2026 Mercury retrograding back into Scorpio wants to get to the bottom of your contracts. — Usa Today, USA Today, 18 Nov. 2025 And then comes the 11/11 portal, where Jupiter begins retrograding in Cancer, your sector of home, family, and emotional roots. — Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 9 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for retrograding
  1. deteriorating
  2. descending
  3. worsening
  4. crumbling
  5. declining
Verb
  • Authorities warned against hiking this route this time of year due to deteriorating conditions and the onset of winter weather.
    — Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Malaysia on Friday ordered hundreds of schools closed in several states because of deteriorating air quality.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of deteriorating
Verb
  • The winds develop when air moves from the Great Basin west toward the California coast, descending mountain slopes and becoming warmer and drier.
    — Sacbee.com, Sacbee.com, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The drive winds through the verdant mountains of eastern Antioquia before descending into the Aburrá Valley, where Medellín stretches across the valley floor and surrounding hillsides.
    — Nikkita Nair, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of descending
Verb
  • The victim went to the campus health clinic in August with worsening finger tingling and numbness, and leg weakness.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Stocks dropped to their worst day since July on Wednesday after the latest signal that inflation is worsening.
    — Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of worsening
Verb
  • By Saturday night, Long Beach reported that seawater had entered homes and into streets, with the city’s Peninsula neighborhood being hard hit, and its boardwalk crumbling.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2026
  • The hotel’s journey from crumbling Presbyterian church to Silver Lake hotspot is more interesting, a soap opera that involves government red tape, some nuns and Katy Perry.
    — Mickey Rapkin, HollywoodReporter, 10 Oct. 2026
Definition of crumbling
Verb
  • Women naturally store less creatine than men, and during perimenopause and menopause, declining estrogen can take a toll on both muscle health and mental clarity.
    — Maggie Ryan, Flow Space, 15 Oct. 2026
  • The result has been sturdy economic growth, even as lower-income and even middle-income households have continued to struggle under stubborn inflation and declining earnings.
    — Rob Wile, NBC news, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of declining

Browse Nearby Words

retrogrades
retrograding
retrogress
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Cite this Entry

“Retrograding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/retrograding. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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