descend

Pronunciation

• IPA ^(key): /dɪˈsɛnd/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Hyphenation (US): de‧scend; (UK): des‧cend

Verb

Plain form descend

Third-person singular descends

Past tense descended

Past participle descended

Present participle descending

1. (transitive & intransitive) If you descend, you go down.

   He descended the staircase to the basement.

2. (usually passive) If you are descended from someone, you are their younger relative.

   William II is descended from William I.

Synonyms

• fall
• sink
• decline
• hit
• appear
• affect
• arrive

Related words

• descendant
• descent