Decline | Mean of decline in English Dictionary

/dɪˈklaɪn/

• Verb
• to become lower in amount or less in number
1. Oil prices continue to decline. [=decrease, fall]
2. The construction of new houses declined five percent this year.
3. The animal's numbers are declining rapidly.
• to become worse in condition or quality
1. The patient's condition has declined. [=worsened, deteriorated]
2. My grandmother's health has been declining since she broke her hip.
3. The civilization began to decline around 1000 B.C.
• to say that you will not or cannot do something
1. The company declined comment on the scandal.
2. The company declined to comment on the scandal.
3. She declined to run for a second term as governor.

• to say no to something in a polite way
1. Regretfully, we have to decline [=turn down] the invitation to your wedding.
2. He changed his mind and declined the company's offer.
3. I invited him, but he declined.
• to list the different forms of (a noun, pronoun, or adjective)
1. We had to decline the Latin adjective “brevis” on our test.
• Noun
• the process of becoming worse in condition or quality
1. a period of economic decline
2. He says that American industry is in a state of decline.
3. There was a general feeling that the country was in decline. [=was becoming less powerful, wealthy, etc.]
4. The town fell/went into decline after the factory closed down.
5. He has experienced a decline in health.
6. the decline and fall of the Roman empire
7. The company's products suffered a decline in quality.
8. a gradual physical/mental decline
• a change to a lower number or amount
1. The economy experienced a decline of two million jobs.
2. We saw a sharp/steep decline in sales this month.
3. Declines led advances at the end of the trading day.
4. There was some decline in stock prices at the end of the trading session.
• becoming worse in condition or less in size, amount, number, etc.
1. His health is on the decline.
2. Sales are on the decline.