(~s, declining, ~d)
Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
1.
If something ~s, it becomes less in quantity, importance, or strength.
The number of staff has ~d from 217,000 to 114,000...
Hourly output by workers ~d 1.3% in the first quarter...
Union membership and union power are declining fast.
...a declining birth rate.
VERB: V from/to/by amount, V amount, V, V-ing
2.
If you ~ something or ~ to do something, you politely refuse to accept it or do it. (FORMAL)
He ~d their invitation...
The band ~d to comment on the story...
He offered the boys some coffee. They ~d politely.
VERB: V n, V to-inf, V
3.
If there is a ~ in something, it becomes less in quantity, importance, or quality.
There wasn’t such a big ~ in enrollments after all...
The first signs of economic ~ became visible.
N-VAR: oft N with poss, N in n
4.
If something is in ~ or on the ~, it is gradually decreasing in importance, quality, or power.
Thankfully the smoking of cigarettes is on the ~...
PHRASE: v-link PHR
5.
If something goes or falls into ~, it begins to gradually decrease in importance, quality, or power.
Libraries are an investment for the future and they should not be allowed to fall into ~.
PHRASE