Before you choose a decrease synonym, check one thing: is someone making the number smaller, or is it shrinking by itself? For the first, use reduce, lower or cut. For the second, use decline, fall or drop. Learners trip over this split more than anything else here.
Next comes size. A dip is tiny and a plunge is dramatic, so a report should pick the verb its chart can back up. The sections cover both questions, plus the noun, the forms decreased and decreasing, and the antonyms. For related verbs, see the action verbs hub.
Swatch at a glance
Best swaps
reduce, lower, cut, decline, dropPart of speech
Verb (with or without an object), nounMost formal
diminish, curtail, abateMost casual
cut back, go down, dipStrongest
plummet, plunge, slashAntonyms
increase, rise, grow, boostWatch out
Decline cannot take an object in this sense. Write sales declined, not we declined sales.Word forms covered
decreases, decreased, decreasing
Who is doing the shrinking?
English splits this idea into two kinds of verb. Some need an object (you reduce costs). Others never take one (costs fall). A few, like drop and shrink, can do both.
Sizing the fall: a decrease synonym for every chart
Use the chip strip as a guide to scale. Ease is a gentle, often welcome change: inflation eased. Dip is small and probably temporary. Drop is clear and neutral. Plunge is sudden and large. Plummet is the steepest and suggests alarm.
In academic writing, pair a moderate verb with the actual figure. "Enrollment fell by eight percent" is stronger than "enrollment plummeted" without a number.
Swapping it into real lines
- Our household should decrease spending becomes our household should rein in spending.
- The noise decreased after midnight becomes the noise died down after midnight.
- Decrease the oven heat becomes lower the oven heat.
- Her interest decreased over the term becomes her interest waned over the term.
- Crime decreased sharply becomes crime fell sharply.
- Decrease the size of the photo becomes shrink the photo.
Lab report: "The temperature decreased and then decreased again." Varying the verb and adding detail helps: "The temperature dipped at noon, then dropped steadily until dusk."
Decreased, decreasing and the noun
Decreased swaps cleanly: reduced, lowered, fell, declined. Decreasing as an adjective becomes falling, shrinking or dwindling: a dwindling supply. As a noun, a decrease is a reduction, drop, fall or dip. In economics, downturn, slump and contraction describe a wider decline in activity, not a single number.
Tempting swaps with a catch
Diminish often describes value, power or quality rather than a count: the scandal diminished his reputation. Subside fits storms, pain, floods and anger, not prices. Deduct means to subtract a specific amount, as on a bill. Lessen is fine but can sound a little stiff in business emails.
Antonyms of decrease
The direct opposite is increase. For things that rise by themselves, use rise, climb or surge. For people pushing numbers up, use raise, boost or expand. Something that keeps getting bigger can also grow.
- Profits surged in the spring.
- The school boosted its budget for books.
Frequently asked questions
Is reduce or decrease better in formal writing?
Both are formal. Reduce is more common when a person or policy causes the change, while decrease is often used for figures on their own.
Which word means a sudden, large decrease?
Plummet and plunge describe sudden steep falls. Slash works when someone deliberately makes a big cut, as with prices.
Can I use decline instead of decrease?
Yes, when the verb has no object: sales declined. Decline also means to refuse, so check that the sentence cannot be misread.
What is a gentle word for a decrease?
Dip, ease and taper off all describe small or gradual falls. They suit good news, such as traffic easing.
What is the opposite of decrease?
Increase is the direct antonym. Rise, grow, boost and climb are the most useful variations.