decrease

Meanings

Verb

• Of a quantity, to become smaller.
• To make (a quantity) smaller.

Noun

• An amount by which a quantity is decreased.
• A reduction in the number of stitches, usually accomplished by suspending the stitch to be decreased from another existing stitch or by knitting it together with another stitch. See Decrease (knitting).

Related

Similar words

• cut, decrement, drop, fall, loss, lowering, reduction, shrinkage

Opposite words

• gain, increase, increment, raise , rise

Origin

• From Middle English decresen, discresen, from Anglo-Norman, Old French descreistre (French: décroître), from Latin decrescere.