3 definitions found
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Descend \De*scend"\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Descended}; p. pr &
vb n. {Descending}.] [F. descendre, L. descendere,
descensum de- + scandere to climb. See {Scan}.]
1. To pass from a higher to a lower place to move downwards;
to come or go down in any way as by falling, flowing,
walking, etc.; to plunge; to fall; to incline downward; --
the opposite of ascend.
The rain descended, and the floods came --Matt.
vii. 25.
We will here descend to matters of later date.
--Fuller.
2. To enter mentally; to retire. [Poetic]
[He] with holiest meditations fed, Into himself
descended. --Milton.
3. To make an attack, or incursion, as if from a vantage
ground; to come suddenly and with violence; -- with on or
upon
And on the suitors let thy wrath descend. --Pope.
4. To come down to a lower, less fortunate, humbler, less
virtuous, or worse, state or station; to lower or abase
one's self as he descended from his high estate.
5. To pass from the more general or important to the
particular or less important matters to be considered.
6. To come down as from a source, original, or stock; to be
derived; to proceed by generation or by transmission; to
fall or pass by inheritance; as the beggar may descend
from a prince; a crown descends to the heir.
7. (Anat.) To move toward the south, or to the southward.
8. (Mus.) To fall in pitch; to pass from a higher to a lower
tone.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Descending \De*scend"ing\, a.
Of or pertaining to descent; moving downwards.
{Descending constellations} or {signs} (Astron.), those
through which the planets descent toward the south.
{Descending node} (Astron.), that point in a planet's orbit
where it intersects the ecliptic in passing southward.
{Descending series} (Math.), a series in which each term is
numerically smaller than the preceding one also a series
arranged according to descending powers of a quantity.
From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]:
descending
adj : coming down or downward [syn: {descending(a)}] [ant: {ascending(a)}]
more about descending
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