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descend

[dih-send] / dɪˈsɛnd /


VERB
trace ancestry from; be passed or handed down
Synonyms
Antonyms


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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“These deer have become beloved to many of the islanders, as well as the thousands of tourists who descend on Catalina Island every year,” she said Tuesday in an interview.

From Los Angeles Times Sep. 2, 2026

They took some photos at the summit and then began to descend, before becoming separated.

From BBC Sep. 2, 2026

Extraterrestrial cosmologies descend from the philosophically Protestant speculations of Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Paine, each of whom posited a plurality of worlds.

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 28, 2026

The research found that tiny sinking particles known as marine snow release dissolved carbon and nitrogen as they descend into the deep sea.

From Science Daily Jul. 12, 2026

We had agreed to descend the Rhine in a boat from Strasburgh to Rotterdam, whence we might take shipping for London.

From "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley

Island arcs, chains of volcanoes that develop above subduction zones where one oceanic plate descends beneath another, are often unusually rich in gold.

From Science Daily Jul. 29, 2026

It simply descends as you travel west from Bordeaux along empty roads and through deserted villages.

From BBC Jul. 29, 2026

As firefighters in southwest France struggle to bring a forest inferno under control before yet another heatwave descends on the country, Filippi told AFP about the phenomenon.

From Barron's Jul. 27, 2026

The visitor descends a long gentle incline, passing a wall of polished black granite that records the names of the 58,000 American soldiers who died in that war.

From The Wall Street Journal Jun. 27, 2026

She descends the stairs and admires the statue I've created.

From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton

Granted, the bar for Netflix movies has long since descended past Hell’s ninth circle, burrowing so low that it’s carved out a 10th reserved for the streamer’s original titles.

From Salon Sep. 2, 2026

Among first-generation offspring, signs of impaired glucose tolerance appeared only in males descended from mice that consumed sucralose.

From Science Daily Aug. 31, 2026

"When members of the team descended using ropes and called out to those inside, there was no response," Prime Minister Balendra Shah said in an update on Sunday night.

From Barron's Aug. 31, 2026

Last July, hundreds descended on Australia's Gippsland region from around the country for the most exciting event on the annual table tennis calendar.

From BBC Aug. 22, 2026

Sigurd spun and descended into the magical dry spot in the river, coming at Anya.

From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack

"After descending through the opening using ropes and calling out to those inside, no response was received," the prime minister's office said in a statement.

From Barron's Aug. 30, 2026

Like the Beatles’ “Eight Days a Week” and Yes’s “Roundabout,” the track begins with a fade-in, featuring Mr. Scholz playing a descending acoustic-guitar arpeggio.

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 15, 2026

A dissection is when a tear occurs in the aorta’s inner lining, either in the ascending aorta or the descending one.

From MarketWatch Jul. 13, 2026

Phil Wicks can remember the likes of Usain Bolt descending on a packed stadium in south London for a glittering evening of athletics.

From BBC Jul. 11, 2026

Throughout the night they had ridden, as it seemed to Taran, down a long series of descending slopes.

From "The Black Cauldron" by Lloyd Alexander




Vocabulary lists containing descend


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