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descend

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To descend is defined as to go downward, to become lower in pitch, reaching an undesirable state or can refer to a surprise attack or unwelcome visit.

(verb)

An example of descend is when a plane starts to move down or descend before landing.
An example of descend is when a hill goes in a downward direction.
An example of descend is when a musician starts to lower his voice and sing deeper notes.
An example of descend is when you slip into being insane.
An example of descend is when a party gets out of control and turns into chaos.
An example of descend is when your in-laws show up at your house for a surprise visit.

See descend in Webster's New World College Dictionary

intransitive verb

to move from a higher to a lower place; come down or go down
to pass from an earlier to a later time, from greater to less, from general to particular, etc.
to slope or extend downward
to come down (from a source, as from an ancestor): usually with auxiliary be: he is descended from pioneers
to pass by inheritance or heredity: the estate descended to the nephew
to lower oneself or stoop (to some act)
to make a sudden attack, raid, or visit (on or upon)
Astron. to move toward the horizon
Music to move down the scale

Origin: ME descenden < OFr descendre < L descendere, to climb down, fall < de-, down + scandere, to climb < ? IE base *skend-, *skand-, to leap > Gr skandalon (> scandal), Sans Skandati, (he) leaps

transitive verb

to move, step, or pass down or down along

Related Forms:

descendible adjective

See descend in American Heritage Dictionary 4

verb de·scend·ed, de·scend·ing, de·scends

verb, intransitive

To move from a higher to a lower place; come or go down.
To slope, extend, or incline downward: “A rough path descended like a steep stair into the plain” (J.R.R. Tolkien).
a. To come from an ancestor or ancestry: He was descended from a pioneer family.
b. To come down from a source; derive: a tradition descending from colonial days.
c. To pass by inheritance: The house has descended through four generations.
To lower oneself; stoop: “She, the conqueror, had descended to the level of the conquered” (James Bryce).
To proceed or progress downward, as in rank, pitch, or scale: titles listed in descending order of importance; notes that descended to the lower register.
To arrive or attack in a sudden or an overwhelming manner: summer tourists descending on the seashore village.

verb, transitive

a. To move from a higher to a lower part of; go down.
b. To get down from: “People descended the minibus that shuttled guests to the nearby . . . beach” (Howard Kaplan).
To extend or proceed downward along: a road that descended the mountain in sharp curves.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English descenden

Origin: , from Old French descendre

Origin: , from Latin dēscendere

Origin: : dē-, de-

Origin: + scandere, to climb; see skand- in Indo-European roots

Related Forms: