declivity
noun
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What is the Difference Between declivity and acclivity?
Three different English words descend from clivus, the Latin word for "slope" or "hill"—with the help of three Latin prefixes. Declivity combines clivus with the prefix de-, meaning "down" or "away." Acclivity uses ad- (which changes its second letter depending on the root word), meaning "to" or "toward." Hence, an acclivity is an upward slope. The third word has a figurative meaning in English: proclivity makes use of the prefix pro-, meaning "forward," and this word refers to a personal inclination, predisposition, or "leaning."
Synonyms
- declension
- decline
- descent
- dip
- downgrade
- downhill
- fall
- hang
- hanging
Example Sentences
Word History
Latin declivitat-, declivitas, from declivis sloping down, from de- + clivus slope, hill; akin to Latin clinare
1612, in the meaning defined at sense 1
declivities
noun
Synonyms & Similar Words
- falls
- dips
- downhills
- descents
- declines
- hangings
- hollows
- hangs
- depressions
- basins
- declensions
- downgrades
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- acclivities
- rises
- ascents
- hills
- upgrades
- inclines
- gradients
- uphills
- inclinations
- grades
- uprises
- glacis
- pitches
- rakes
- tilts
- leans