verb / noun · neutral
decline
/dɪˈklaɪn/de·CLINE
task1speaking
to become smaller in amount or number; a reduction in amount or number
Examples
“Oil consumption declined steadily after 2012.”
“There was a sharp decline in birth rates.”
“Attendance declined by almost 20% over the period.”
Band 8 sentence
“Following a decade of growth, the town experienced a gradual decline in population due to younger residents moving to cities.”
Collocations
- decline by (5%)
- a steady decline
- decline sharply / decline dramatically
Word family
decline verbdecline noundeclined adjective / past participledeclining adjective / gerund
Common mistakes
The sales decline last year.→The sales declined last year.
There was decline in demand.→There was a decline in demand.
Say it for a higher band
5go down→6fall→7+decline
Synonyms
fall
decrease
Easily confused
fall
“Car registrations fell sharply after 2008.”
Related words
Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.
In Peaks & troughs
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