Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To make smaller or less; reduce or lessen. synonym: decrease.
- intransitive verb To detract from the authority, reputation, or prestige of.
- intransitive verb To cause to taper.
- intransitive verb Music To reduce (a perfect or minor interval) by a semitone.
- intransitive verb To become smaller or less.
- intransitive verb To taper.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To taper, as a column.
- To lessen; make or seem to make less or smaller by any means; reduce: opposed to increase and augment: as, to
diminish a number by subtraction; to diminish the revenue by reducing the customs. - To lower in power, importance, or estimation; degrade; belittle; detract from.
- To take away; subtract: with from, and applied to the object removed.
- In music, to lessen by a semitone, as an interval.
- To lessen; become or appear less or smaller; dwindle: as, the prospect of success is diminishing by delay.
- Synonyms Dwindle, Contract, etc. (see
decrease ); to shrink, subside, abate, ebb, fall off.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- transitive verb To make smaller in any manner; to reduce in bulk or amount; to lessen; -- opposed to
augment orincrease . - transitive verb To lessen the authority or dignity of; to put down; to degrade; to abase; to weaken.
- transitive verb (Mus.) To make smaller by a half step; to make (an interval) less than minor.
- transitive verb To take away; to subtract.
- transitive verb one whose upper diameter is less than the lower.
- transitive verb a scale of gradation used in finding the different points for drawing the spiral curve of the volute.
- transitive verb (Arch.) a board cut with a concave edge, for fixing the entasis and curvature of a shaft.
- transitive verb (Arch.) a stile which is narrower in one part than in another, as in many glazed doors.
- intransitive verb To become or appear less or smaller; to lessen.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb transitive To make
smaller . - verb intransitive To become
smaller . - verb intransitive To
taper . - verb intransitive To
disappear gradually. - verb transitive, music To
reduce aperfect orminor interval by asemitone .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb decrease in size, extent, or range
- verb lessen the authority, dignity, or reputation of
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word diminish.
Examples
-
The Dative of Reference denotes the person _to whom a statement refers, of whom it is true_, or _to whom it is of interest; _ as, -- mihi ante oculōs versāris, _you hover before my eyes_ (lit. _hover before the eyes to me_); illī sevēritās amōrem nōn dēminuit, _in his case severity did not diminish love_ (lit. _to him severity did not diminish_); interclūdere inimīcīs commeātum, _to cut of the supplies of the enemy.
New Latin Grammar Charles E. Bennett
-
"Uncharted 2" or "BioShock 2," I'm not going to let that number in the title diminish my enjoyment.
-
It is a known fact that the quantities of chemicals secreted by the brain diminish astronomically from the early 20's to late 70's.
Learning Spanish 2005
-
It is a known fact that the quantities of chemicals secreted by the brain diminish astronomically from the early 20's to late 70's.
Learning Spanish 2005
-
It is a known fact that the quantities of chemicals secreted by the brain diminish astronomically from the early 20's to late 70's.
Learning Spanish 2005
-
It is a known fact that the quantities of chemicals secreted by the brain diminish astronomically from the early 20's to late 70's.
Learning Spanish 2005
-
It is a known fact that the quantities of chemicals secreted by the brain diminish astronomically from the early 20's to late 70's.
Learning Spanish 2005
-
It is a known fact that the quantities of chemicals secreted by the brain diminish astronomically from the early 20's to late 70's.
Learning Spanish 2005
-
It is a known fact that the quantities of chemicals secreted by the brain diminish astronomically from the early 20's to late 70's.
Learning Spanish 2005
-
It is a known fact that the quantities of chemicals secreted by the brain diminish astronomically from the early 20's to late 70's.
Learning Spanish 2005
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.