decrease

/dɪkˈɹis/dih-KREES

Meaningto grow less

Common meaning: to grow smaller

dedown, away, off; undoing
creasto grow, get biggerLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 481 · scan

‘down, away, off’ + ‘to grow, get bigger’ → decrease

Journey through time

Latincrēscō, crēvī, crētum‘to grow, get bigger’
Old Frenchdecroissource
Englishdecrease‘to grow smaller’ · today

de- also in: deter decamp decide deduce defame

creas also in: accrue recruit concrete crescent increase

Sources & notes

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Built on Latin crēscō ‘to grow, get bigger’.

Did you know: our wording, based on Lewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), entry crēscō, p. 481 · dictionary scan; Skeat, Etymological Dictionary (1898), entry RECRUIT, p. 496 · dictionary scan

Roots

crēscō, crēvī, crētum Latin “to grow, get bigger”

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