decline

verb

OPAL WOPAL S

/dɪˈklaɪn/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they decline	/dɪˈklaɪn/ /dɪˈklaɪn/
he / she / it declines	/dɪˈklaɪnz/ /dɪˈklaɪnz/
past simple declined	/dɪˈklaɪnd/ /dɪˈklaɪnd/
past participle declined	/dɪˈklaɪnd/ /dɪˈklaɪnd/
-ing form declining	/dɪˈklaɪnɪŋ/ /dɪˈklaɪnɪŋ/

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[intransitive] (rather formal) to become smaller, fewer, weaker, etc.
- Support for the party continues to decline.
- decline by something Sales of whole milk declined by 4 per cent.
- decline in something The city declined in importance in the nineteenth century.
- to decline in popularity/value/number
- Jobs in manufacturing have steadily declined.
- to decline sharply/significantly/dramatically
- to decline rapidly/markedly/substantially
- Her health began to decline.
Extra Examples
- Profits declined by 6 per cent this year.
- The economy has declined sharply in recent years.
- The market for these products is declining fast.
- The number of full-time staff has declined from 300 to just 50.
- This section of the market has slowly declined in importance.
- Her health was declining rapidly.
Topics Change, cause and effectb2
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adverb
- considerably
- dramatically
- drastically
- …
preposition
- by
- from
- to
- …
phrases
- decline in importance, numbers, size, etc.
See full entry
[intransitive, transitive] (formal) to refuse politely to accept or to do something synonym refuse1
- I offered to give them a lift but they declined.
- decline something to decline an offer/invitation
- We politely declined her invitation.
- She declined a second glass of wine and called for a taxi.
- decline to do something Their spokesman declined to comment on the allegations.
Extra Examples
- Patients of course have the right to decline treatment.
- The minister declined to be interviewed.
- I absolutely decline to discuss my dealings with him or anyone.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adverb
- politely
- respectfully
See full entry
[intransitive, transitive] decline (something) (grammar) if a noun, an adjective or a pronoun declines, it has different forms according to whether it is the subject or the object of a verb, whether it is in the singular or plural, etc. When you decline a noun, etc., you list these forms.Topics Languagec2

compare conjugate

decline

noun

OPAL WOPAL S

/dɪˈklaɪn/

[countable, usually singular, uncountable]

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a continuous decrease in the number, value, quality, etc. of something
- decline in something There has been a 5 per cent decline in student numbers.
- decline of something the decline of seabird populations
- a sharp/steep/rapid decline
- a steady/gradual decline
- They have experienced decades of economic decline.
- in decline Industry in Britain has been in decline since the 1970s.
- Many of the city's magnificent buildings fell into decline.
Wordfinder
- boom
- decline
- dip
- fluctuate
- level off/out
- peak
- plateau
- plummet
- slump
- trend
Extra Examples
- The cloth trade went into gradual decline.
- a steady decline in manufacturing
- We have seen a sharp decline in educational standards over recent years.
- a steep decline in sales
- the moral decline of the nation
- an industry in terminal decline
- The increased gold price lead to the decline of his jewellery business.
- This area has been on the decline for some years now.
- We must halt this decline in health services.
- These measures have failed to reverse the country's economic decline.
- the decline and fall of a great civilization
Topics Change, cause and effectb2, Moneyb2
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- catastrophic
- considerable
- dramatic
- …
verb + decline
- experience
- fall into
- go into
- …
decline + verb
- occur
- begin
preposition
- in decline
- on the decline
- decline in
- …
phrases
- the decline and fall of something
See full entry
Word Originlate Middle English: from Old French decliner, from Latin declinare ‘bend down, turn aside’, from de- ‘down’ + clinare ‘to bend’.