decliner

de·cline

 (dĭ-klīn′)

v. de·clined, de·clin·ing, de·clines

v.intr.

1. To express polite refusal: I wanted to invite them but I was afraid they would decline.

2.

a. To slope downward; descend: The roof declines at a steep angle.

b. To bend downward; droop: boughs declining toward the ground.

3. To degrade or lower oneself; stoop: refused to decline to their level of behavior.

4. To deteriorate gradually; fail: His health has been declining for years.

5.

a. To sink, as the setting sun.

b. To draw to a gradual close: We made our way home as the day declined.

v.tr.

1. To refuse politely: I declined their offer of help. See Synonyms at refuse¹.

2. To cause to slope or bend downward.

3. Grammar To inflect (a noun, a pronoun, or an adjective) for number and case.

n.

1. The process or result of declining, especially:

a. A gradual deterioration, as in numbers, activity, or quality: "overwhelming evidence that fish stocks ... are in decline" (Jonathan Bocknek).

b. A downward movement or fall, as in price.

c. A deterioration of health: the patient's rapid decline.

2. A downward slope; a declivity: the sharp decline of the dunes to the sea.

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[Middle English declinen, from Old French decliner, from Latin dēclīnāre, to turn away, bend downward, change the form of a word : dē-, de- + -clīnāre, to lean, bend; see klei- in Indo-European roots.]

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de·clin′a·ble adj.

de·clin′er n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.