to diminish or cause to diminish in size, number, strength, etc
the act or process of diminishing; reduction the amount by which something has been diminished
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
de•crease /v. dɪˈkris; n. ˈdikris, dɪˈkris/USA pronunciation
v., -creased, -creas•ing, n.
v.
n. [countable]
de•creas•ing•ly, adv.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026v.
- to lessen, esp. by degrees;
(cause to) diminish: [no obj ]:Water consumption had to decrease to avoid a drought.[ ~ + obj ]:They told us to decrease spending.
n. [countable]
- the act or process of decreasing.
- the amount by which a thing is lessened:a decrease of only 15%.
de•creas•ing•ly, adv.
de•crease
(v. di krēs′;n. dē′krēs, di krēs′),USA pronunciation v., -creased, -creas•ing, n.
v.i.
v.t.
n.
v.i.
- to diminish or lessen in extent, quantity, strength, power, etc.:During the ten-day march across the desert their supply of water decreased rapidly.
v.t.
- to make less;
cause to diminish:to decrease one's work load.
n.
- the act or process of decreasing;
condition of being decreased;
gradual reduction:a decrease in sales; a decrease in intensity. - the amount by which a thing is lessened:The decrease in sales was almost 20 percent.
- Latin dēcrēscere (dē- de- + crēscere to grow); see crescent
- Old French decreiss-, long stem of decreistre
- Middle English decres (noun, nominal), decresen (verb, verbal) 1350–1400
- 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged wane, lessen, fall off, decline, contract, abate. Decrease, diminish, dwindle, shrink imply becoming smaller or less in amount. Decrease commonly implies a sustained reduction in stages, esp. of bulk, size, volume, or quantity, often from some imperceptible cause or inherent process:The swelling decreased daily.Diminish usually implies the action of some external cause that keeps taking away:Disease caused the number of troops to diminish steadily.Dwindle implies an undesirable reduction by degrees, resulting in attenuation:His followers dwindled to a mere handful.Shrink esp. implies contraction through an inherent property under specific conditions:Many fabrics shrink in hot water.
- 3.See corresponding entry in Unabridged abatement, decline, subsidence, shrinking, dwindling, ebbing.
- 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged increase, expand.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'decrease in number' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):