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- DictionaryDi·min·ish/dəˈminiSH/
verb
- 1. make or become less: "a tax whose purpose is to diminish spending"
to reduce or be reduced in size or importance: I don't want to diminish her achievements, but she did have a lot of help. These memories will not be diminished by time. What he did has seriously diminished him in many people's eyes. We've seen our house diminish greatly / sharply / substantially in value over the last six months. Fewer examples.
To diminish is to become smaller, fewer, or less, as in If we don’t order more, our stock of supplies will slowly diminish until we run out completely. It can also mean to make smaller, fewer, or less, as in We need to diminish our reliance on fossil fuels.
Diminish means to make smaller or lesser. If you cover a lightbulb with a dark lamp shade, the light from the lamp will diminish. It can also mean become less important. Once the light has been dimmed, its role in lighting the room is diminished. If you look at diminish, you see 'minis' which comes from the Latin word minus, as in subtraction ...
used to refer to a point at which you start achieving less than the value of the time or money you put into something. Our efforts were producing diminishing returns. In general, the more exercise you take, the greater the health benefit; but beyond a certain level you get diminishing returns.
3 days ago · 1. to make or become smaller, fewer, or less. 2. (transitive) architecture. to cause (a column, etc) to taper. 3. (transitive) music. to decrease (a minor or perfect interval) by a semitone. 4. to belittle or be belittled; reduce in authority, status, etc; depreciate. Collins English Dictionary.
1 [intransitive, transitive] diminish (something) to become or to make something become smaller, weaker, etc. synonym decrease The world's resources are rapidly diminishing. His influence has diminished with time. Our efforts were producing diminishing returns (= we achieved less although we spent more time or money).
Add to word list. to become less, or to make something become less: Your pain should diminish gradually after taking these tablets. (Definition of diminish from the Cambridge Learner's Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)
