DWINDLE

dwindle, dwindle away, dwindle down

(verb) become smaller or lose substance; “Her savings dwindled down”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Verb

dwindle (third-person singular simple present dwindles, present participle dwindling, simple past and past participle dwindled)

(intransitive) To decrease, shrink, diminish, reduce in size or intensity.

(intransitive, figuratively) To fall away in quality; degenerate, sink.

(transitive) To lessen; to bring low.

To break up or disperse.

Anagrams

• windled

Source: Wiktionary


Dwin"dle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dwindled; p. pr. & vb. n. Dwindling.] Etym: [From OE. dwinen to languish, waste away, AS. dwinan; akin to LG. dwinen, D. dwijnen to vanish, Icel. dvina to cease, dwindle, Sw. tvina; of uncertain origin. The suffix -le, preceded by d excrescent after n, is added to the root with a diminutive force.]

Definition: To diminish; to become less; to shrink; to waste or consume away; to become degenerate; to fall away. Weary sennights nine times nine Shall he dwindle, peak and pine. Shak. Religious societies, though begun with excellent intentions, are said to have dwindled into factious clubs. Swift.

Dwin"dle, v. t.

1. To make less; to bring low. Our drooping days are dwindled down to naught. Thomson.

2. To break; to disperse. [R.] Clarendon.

Dwin"dle, n.

Definition: The process of dwindling; dwindlement; decline; degeneracy. [R.] Johnson.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Coffee Trivia

The word “coffee” entered the English language in 1582 via the Dutch “koffie,” borrowed from the Ottoman Turkish “kahve,” borrowed in turn from the Arabic “qahwah.” The Arabic word qahwah was traditionally held to refer to a type of wine.

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