Dwindle

/ˈdwɪndəl/ verb

Definition

To gradually become smaller, fewer, or weaker over time; to decrease steadily.

Etymology

From Middle English dwinen, from Old English dwīnan meaning 'to waste away.' The diminutive suffix -le was added in the 16th century, intensifying the sense of gradual reduction.

Kelly Says

The word 'dwindle' literally means 'to waste away little by little,' and it perfectly captures the slow, almost invisible way things disappear—like how your allowance dwindles throughout the month, or how dinosaurs dwindled into extinction.

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