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decline

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🇺🇸 /dɪklˈaɪn/

noun 编号: D00526 牛津3000 BNC #2190 COCA #2000

“decline”围绕“向下、变弱或转开”这一核心，既可作名词表示下降、衰退或拒绝，也可作动词表示下降、恶化、拒绝，以及语法上的变格。

💡 记忆钩子

把“decline”想成一条向下倾斜、逐渐偏离原路的线：东西向下就是下降或衰退，数量向下就是减少，身体状况向下就是恶化；把某事转开、不接纳，就是拒绝。语法中的变格则像词形沿着不同方向发生变化。

📝 学习建议

先掌握“下降、衰退”和“拒绝”两组常用意义，再学习语法术语和体育专门意义。
不要把“decline”只理解成“拒绝”；在经济、健康、人口等话题中，它常表示下降或恶化。

📖 中文释义

noun

core 下降；下落

📖 表示从较高位置、水平或状态向下移动或降低，是“向下”这条核心意象最直接的名词用法。

💡 常用“a decline in + 数量或指标”表示某方面下降，也可用“a sharp/steady/rapid decline”说明下降的程度或速度。它既能指具体下落，也能指抽象水平降低；不要把它误当成只表示山坡的词。

countable uncountable

The report shows a sharp decline in sales.

报告显示销售额大幅下降。
core 下坡；向下的斜坡

📖 表示地面、道路或山路向下倾斜的部分，正是“向下倾斜的线”这一记忆画面。

💡 常见结构是“a decline in the road/hill”或“go down a decline”，但日常英语里描述道路时通常更自然地说“a downhill slope”。这个意义多用于具体地形，不能随意替换所有表示抽象下降的场合。

countable uncountable

The road has a steep decline after the bridge.

过桥后道路有一段很陡的下坡。
core 恶化；衰退

📖 表示健康、能力、质量或整体状况逐渐变弱、变坏，是“向下”从位置变化扩展到状态变化。

💡 常见结构是“a decline in + health/quality/condition”或“a decline of + 某种能力”。可用“serious、gradual、sudden”等词修饰；涉及健康时，通常说“a decline in health”，而不是把它理解为一次短暂的不舒服。

countable uncountable

The doctor noticed a gradual decline in her health.

医生注意到她的健康状况逐渐恶化。
common 减少；降低

📖 表示活动、数量、普及程度或规模变小，例如人口、需求或使用率下降。

💡 常见结构是“a decline in population/demand/use”以及“population decline”。它强调数量或普及程度减少，不一定表示质量变差；描述统计趋势时常与“increase”相对。

countable uncountable

The city is worried about a decline in its population.

这座城市担心人口减少。
common 拒绝；不接受

📖 表示拒绝某项请求、交易或付款，把它从自己的选择中“转开”。

💡 常见结构是“a decline of + 请求/提议”或“a decline in payment/authorization”，正式度通常高于日常的“refusal”。在银行或支付语境中，它可指交易被拒绝，不一定意味着顾客主动说“不”。

countable uncountable

The customer received a decline of the loan application.

这位客户收到贷款申请被拒的通知。

declines plural

verb

core 下降；下落

📖 表示价格、数量、水平等向下变化，是动词最基本的“向下”用法。

💡 常见结构是“名词 + decline”或“decline by/to + 数值”，例如说明下降幅度或降到某个水平。它通常是不及物动词，不能直接说“decline something”来表示某物自行下降；描述人为降低时要用相应的及物结构或其他动词。

intransitive

The currency declined by five percent this month.

这种货币本月下跌了百分之五。

Temperatures are expected to decline overnight.

预计气温会在夜间下降。
core 恶化；变弱

📖 表示健康、能力、质量或局势逐渐变差，是“向下”用于抽象状态的动词形式。

💡 常见结构是“health/condition/performance declines”或“decline over time”。它通常表示渐进的变差，不只是某一刻的失败；说某人主动使情况变坏时，不能只用这个不及物用法。

intransitive

His eyesight began to decline after the injury.

受伤后，他的视力开始变差。
rare 使下沉；使向下弯

📖 指把某物向下弯曲、压低或使其下垂，是“向下”核心意象的古旧及物用法。

transitive
common 使减少；使降低

📖 表示导致数量、规模或程度变小，把某项事物推向更低的水平。

💡 常见结构是“decline + 名词”，但这种及物用法较正式或较少见；在日常表达中，表示主动减少某物时常用“reduce”或“decrease”。不要把它和不及物的“sales decline”混淆。

transitive

Higher costs declined the company's profits.

更高的成本使公司的利润减少了。
rare 转开；偏离

📖 表示从直线、原方向或原路转向一边，与“向下弯、转开”的核心意象相连。
core 拒绝；不愿做

📖 表示选择不接受某事或不去做某事，就像把请求从自己面前转开。

💡 拒绝做某事常用“decline to do something”，拒绝某项邀请、提议或服务常用“decline something”。它比“say no”更正式、更委婉；不要在“decline to do”后接动名词。

transitive

She politely declined to answer the question.

她礼貌地拒绝回答这个问题。

I had to decline their invitation.

我不得不谢绝他们的邀请。
common 使变格

📖 在语言学中，指让名词、代词或形容词按照格、数、性等语法范畴改变词形。

💡 常见结构是“decline a noun/pronoun”或“a word declines for case and number”。这是语法术语，通常用于讨论有词形变化的语言；不要把它理解成普通意义上的“拒绝”。

transitive usually

Students learn how to decline nouns in Latin.

学生学习如何在拉丁语中给名词变格。
rare 背诵词形变化

📖 指把一个词的各种变格形式依次念出来，也就是背诵它的词形变化表。

transitive
rare 依次念出；逐项列举

📖 由“像背诵变格表一样依次展开”引申为从头到尾按顺序念出或列举内容。

broadly
rare 放弃接受罚罚

📖 在加拿大英语的橄榄球语境中，指球队拒绝接受对方犯规带来的处罚，因为保留原比赛结果可能更有利。

Canadian

declines present,singular,third-person declining participle,present declined participle,past declined past decline first-person,present,singular declined first-person,past,singular decline present,second-person,singular declinest archaic,present,second-person,singular declined past,second-person,singular declinedst archaic,past,second-person,singular declineth archaic,present,singular,third-person declined past,singular,third-person decline plural,present declined past,plural decline present,subjunctive declined past,subjunctive decline imperative,present - imperative,past

📘 英文释义 (WordNet) 共 11 组

grow worse

同义词集: worsen decline

Conditions in the slum worsened

反义: ameliorate, better, improve, meliorate 上位: change state, turn 下位: degenerate, deprive, deteriorate, devolve, drop, drop away, drop off, fail, fall away, impoverish, lose, regress, retrograde, retrogress, slip, suffer, tumble

grow smaller

同义词集: decline go down wane

Interest in the project waned

上位: decrease, diminish, fall, lessen 下位: dip, drop

show unwillingness towards

同义词集: refuse decline

he declined to join the group on a hike

反义: accept, consent, go for 上位: react, respond 下位: disdain, disobey, freeze off, pooh-pooh, regret, reject, scorn, spurn, turn down

inflect for number, gender, case, etc.

同义词集: decline

in many languages, speakers decline nouns, pronouns, and adjectives

go down in value;

同义词集: decline slump correct

the stock market corrected

prices slumped

上位: come down, descend, fall, go down

go down

同义词集: decline

The roof declines here

上位: drop 下位: dip, sink

refuse to accept

同义词集: refuse reject pass up turn down decline

He refused my offer of hospitality

反义: accept, have, take 下位: bounce, dishonor, dishonour

a downward slope or bend

同义词集: descent declivity fall decline declination declension downslope

反义: acclivity, ascent, climb, raise, rise, upgrade 上位: incline, side, slope 下位: downhill, steep

a gradual decrease; as of stored charge or current

同义词集: decay decline

上位: decrease, decrement

change toward something smaller or lower

同义词集: decline diminution

上位: decrease, decrement 下位: declension, decline in quality, deterioration, ebb, ebbing, erosion, loss, wane, worsening

a condition inferior to an earlier condition; a gradual falling off from a better state

同义词集: decline declination

反义: improvement, melioration 上位: condition, status 下位: disuse, neglect, twilight, wreck

🌳 词源

词源可追溯到表示“向下弯、转开、使发生词形变化”的拉丁词根。英语中的语法意义直接承自拉丁语，其他主要意义则经由古法语发展而来。

From Middle English declinen, and ultimately Latin declīnō (“to bend, turn aside, deflect, inflect, decline”, from dē- (“down”) + clīnō (“to bend, to incline”)), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱley- (English lean). The senses arrived from two separate pathways in Middle English: * The grammatical sense came from Old English declīnian, which was borrowed directly from the Latin etymon. * All senses except the grammatical sense were derived from those of Old French decliner. Old French itself borrowed the verb from Latin.

🔄 变式

- imperat declined 1st_sg declinedst archaic declines plural declinest archaic declineth archaic declining present

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