as in bowing
bending downward or forward
we awaited our punishment with declined heads
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in refused
to show unwillingness to accept, do, engage in, or agree to
he declined the invitation to the party she declined to participate in the soccer game
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in denied
to be unwilling to grant
declined our request to hold a party
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in fell
to go to a lower level especially abruptly
new-car sales declined to their lowest level in years
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in deteriorated
to become worse or of less value
his reputation as a writer began to decline not long after his death
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5
as in decreased
to grow less in scope or intensity especially gradually
the winds should decline as soon as the cold front passes
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6
as in plunged
to lead or extend downward
the bike path declines toward the riverbank and then follows the river for several miles
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of declined
Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado
january 12, Sacbee.com, 12 Jan. 2026
Wiener declined to answer the question in either direction.
—Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 11 Jan. 2026
Debt as a percentage of GDP declined to a low of 31% in 1974.
—Jay Reddick, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 Jan. 2026
That meeting will presumably involve conversations about LaFleur’s future, which the head coach declined multiple times to discuss at his season-ending news conference the day after a 31-27 wild-card loss to the Chicago Bears in which the Packers blew an 18-point halftime lead.
—Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 11 Jan. 2026
The Los Angeles Fire Department said two patients were evaluated at the scene and both declined treatment and transport.
—Leah Sarnoff, ABC News, 11 Jan. 2026
The three deaths remain under investigation, and SCSO has declined to comment on whether the twins’ father is a suspect, per 5News.
—Toria Sheffield, PEOPLE, 11 Jan. 2026
The company also declined to disclose financial details of its 15-year lease at the new headquarters.
—Michael Wayland, CNBC, 11 Jan. 2026
Then, slowly, his attempts declined a bit.
—Charlotte Observer, 11 Jan. 2026
Verb
Since the mandate, neural tube defects have dramatically declined in almost every single ethnic population except for Latinos, according to Jaffery.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for declined
Verb
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Google, Meta, Microsoft’s LinkedIn, and Elon Musk’s X have all delayed, adjusted, or flat-out refused to launch AI products because of the bloc’s laws.—
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And the defense refused to yield.—
Verb
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At the time, ICE had requested local officials hold him in jail, but that request was denied, the affidavit said.—
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The agency that was set to investigate before being denied access to evidence and case materials is called the Force Investigations Unit of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, part of the Department of Public Safety.—
Verb
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The at-bats were brief and uneventful, the opposite of the approach that carried Toronto to this stage and felled Snell in Game 1.—
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That says a lot about the 2025 Red Sox, who were a top offensive team in many metrics, but were also felled by their bats in crucial spots throughout the year and postseason.—
Verb
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At the time, Denver’s Landmark Preservation office told the Denver Gazette that the old neon was too deteriorated to restore.—
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The already-frosty relationship between Devers and the front office deteriorated to an irreparable level in May, when Triston Casas suffered a season-ending knee injury.—
Verb
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Content licensing revenues decreased 27% to $59 million primarily due to the timing and availability of deliveries in the period.—
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The median sale price for detached homes remained flat at $650,000, while attached homes decreased by 3% to $388,220.—
Verb
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Erdoğan changed course in 2023 and brought in new central-bank leadership who jacked interest rates to nearly 50 percent and plunged the country into a recession in a desperate effort to restore credibility.—
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Shares have plunged more than 20% over the course of those two days.—
Adjective
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James O’Donoghue, a planetary scientist with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, likened our planet’s tilting phenomenon to a nodding head.—
Verb
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Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a liberal Democrat with a pragmatist bent, instantly rejected the suggestion that Mamdani represented the new face of the Democratic Party.—
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Demonstrators argued that taxpayer money should not be used to harm or kill innocent people and rejected claims that the killing of Good was an act of self-defense.—
Cite this Entry
“Declined.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/declined. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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