dwindle

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dwin·dle / ˈdwindl/ • v. [intr.] diminish gradually in size, amount, or strength: traffic has dwindled to a trickle | [as adj.] (dwindling) dwindling resources. ORIGIN: late 16th cent.: frequentative of Scots and dialect dwine ‘fade away,’ from Old English dwīnan, of Germanic origin; related to Middle Dutch dwīnen and Old Norse dvína.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

dwindle

views updated Jun 11 2018

dwindle XVI. f. (dial.) dwine, OE. dwīnan waste away = (M)LG., MDu. dwīnen, ON. dvina; see -LE 2.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

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