Decline in Different Languages
Discover 'Decline' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'decline' carries significant weight in English, often used to describe a downturn or deterioration in various contexts. Its cultural importance is evident in its widespread use across many fields, from business and economics to health and science. Understanding the translation of 'decline' in different languages can open up new avenues of communication and cultural exchange.
For instance, in Spanish, 'decline' is 'declive,' while in French, it's 'déclin.' In German, it's 'Rückgang,' and in Mandarin Chinese, it's '下降 (xiàjiàng).' These translations not only help us navigate language barriers but also offer insights into how different cultures perceive and express the concept of decline.
Moreover, the word 'decline' has a rich historical context. It was used to describe the fall of the Roman Empire, a significant event that shaped Western civilization. Understanding the translations of 'decline' can provide a deeper appreciation of this historical event and its impact on modern society.
Explore the translations of 'decline' in various languages below, and gain a new perspective on this powerful word.
Decline
Decline in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | agteruitgang | ||
| The word "agteruitgang" is derived from the Dutch word "achteruitgang", which has the same meaning. | |||
| Amharic | ማሽቆልቆል | ||
| The verb "ማሽቆልቆል" also means "to make oneself scarce". | |||
| Hausa | ƙi | ||
| 'ƙi' also means 'to be reluctant or unwilling to do something'. | |||
| Igbo | ojuju | ||
| The word 'ojuju' in Igbo also means 'to get lean or thin', referring to a physical decline rather than a generalized decline. | |||
| Malagasy | fitontonganan'ny | ||
| The Malagasy verb 'fitontonganan'ny' has two meanings: 'decline' and 'to be bent over' | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kuchepa | ||
| "Kuchepa" also means "to go down". Both meanings come from the root -chepa "to go downwards, to decline". | |||
| Shona | kuderera | ||
| The word "kuderera" can also mean "to fall" or "to lose" in Shona. | |||
| Somali | hoos u dhac | ||
| The word "hoos u dhac" has a second meaning of "descent" or "slope." | |||
| Sesotho | fokotseha | ||
| The word fokotseha can also refer to the lowering of a flag as a sign of mourning. | |||
| Swahili | kupungua | ||
| The word "kupungua" in Swahili can also refer to a decrease in size or quantity, a loss of strength or vitality, or a falling away from a state of grace. | |||
| Xhosa | ukuhla | ||
| The word 'ukuhla' in Xhosa can also mean 'to be thin' or 'to be lean'. Its alternate meaning, 'to be slow' or 'to be sluggish', is used to describe the decline in health or vigor of a person or animal. | |||
| Yoruba | kọ silẹ | ||
| The word "kọ silẹ" in Yoruba means "decline", but it can also mean "reject" or "refuse". | |||
| Zulu | ukuncipha | ||
| The Zulu word "ukuncipha" can also mean "to bow down" or "to submit". | |||
| Bambara | ka ban | ||
| Ewe | yi anyi | ||
| Kinyarwanda | kugabanuka | ||
| Lingala | koboya | ||
| Luganda | okugaana | ||
| Sepedi | latola | ||
| Twi (Akan) | te kɔ fam | ||
Decline in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | انخفاض | ||
| The word "انخفاض" can also refer to a slope or a decrease in value. | |||
| Hebrew | יְרִידָה | ||
| The Hebrew word "יְרִידָה" can also refer to "going down" or "a descent". | |||
| Pashto | کمول | ||
| The word "کمول" in Pashto can also refer to a type of soil or a specific time of day. | |||
| Arabic | انخفاض | ||
| The word "انخفاض" can also refer to a slope or a decrease in value. | |||
Decline in Western European Languages
| Albanian | rënie | ||
| The word "rënie" may also refer to the act of declining or rejecting, or even to a feeling of weakness or faintness. | |||
| Basque | gainbehera | ||
| The Basque verb "gainbehera" derives from the noun "gain" (top) and a suffix meaning "towards", expressing a movement to a lower position | |||
| Catalan | declivi | ||
| The Catalan word "declivi" ultimately derives from the Latin "declivem" (steep downward slope or hill) and is also used to refer to a decline in social or economic conditions. | |||
| Croatian | odbiti | ||
| The verb odбити can also mean 'to reflect' in the context of light or sound. | |||
| Danish | nedgang | ||
| In Norwegian, "nedgang" also means a corridor or a narrow passage. | |||
| Dutch | afwijzen | ||
| "Afwijzen", which stems from Middle Dutch, also means "to deviate" or "to reject in favour of something else." | |||
| English | decline | ||
| The word "decline" stems from the Latin verb "declinare," meaning both "to turn aside" and " to lean away; slope downward." | |||
| French | déclin | ||
| The French word "déclin" comes from the Latin verb "declinare," meaning "to lean down or turn away" | |||
| Frisian | ferfal | ||
| In the Dutch word 'verval' ('decline'), 'fer' is probably related to 'for', which both appear in 'for-treden' ('step forward') and 'farre' ('distance'). Therefore, it could imply that 'ferfal' meant 'a fall to a distance'. | |||
| Galician | declive | ||
| In Galician, "declive" also means "slope" or "hillside". | |||
| German | ablehnen | ||
| The word 'Ablehnen' originated from the Middle High German language and was used to mean 'to reject.' | |||
| Icelandic | hnignun | ||
| The Icelandic word "hnignun" also refers to the decline of a person's health or a change in their circumstances for the worse. | |||
| Irish | meath | ||
| The word 'meath' in Irish, meaning 'decline' | |||
| Italian | declino | ||
| The word "declino" in Italian also refers to the west, especially as a point of the compass. | |||
| Luxembourgish | ënnergang | ||
| In the context of the sinking of a ship, the word 'Ënnergang' also means 'wreck'. | |||
| Maltese | tnaqqis | ||
| The word "tnaqqis" derives from the Arabic "naqṣ", which can also mean "reduction" or "omission". | |||
| Norwegian | avslå | ||
| Originally meaning 'to strike off', 'avslå' comes from Old Norse 'afslá', which meant 'to slaughter' and is related to 'slå' ('strike'). | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | declínio | ||
| In Portuguese, "declínio" can also mean "slope" or "sinking," reflecting its Latin origin "declinare" (to turn aside). | |||
| Scots Gaelic | crìonadh | ||
| Crìonadh derives from the Proto-Celtic root *kri- or *krei-, meaning 'to diminish' or 'to shrink'. | |||
| Spanish | disminución | ||
| Spanish 'disminución' stems from Latin 'dis-' + 'minutionem' ('making small'), so means literally 'making less', i.e. decreasing or reducing, hence decline. | |||
| Swedish | nedgång | ||
| Nedgång can also mean 'descent' or 'slope' in Swedish, and is related to the word 'ned' meaning 'down'. | |||
| Welsh | dirywiad | ||
| The Welsh word "dirywiad" is derived from the verb "dirywio" meaning "to grow feeble or weak". | |||
Decline in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | заняпад | ||
| The word "заняпад" also means "west" in Belarusian, reflecting the historical association of the west with decline and darkness. | |||
| Bosnian | pad | ||
| Bosnian pad (decline) originates from Old Slavic padъ (fall) which also meant 'slope' and 'hill'. | |||
| Bulgarian | упадък | ||
| The word "упадък" in Bulgarian is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*opadъ", meaning "fall" or "drop". | |||
| Czech | pokles | ||
| The word "pokles" in Czech is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*poklęsnǫti", meaning "to stumble" or "to fall down", and is related to the words "klęska" ("disaster") and "klečet" ("to kneel"). | |||
| Estonian | langus | ||
| In Latin, "languesco" means "to become weak or faint". In Estonian, "langus" also means "downpour". | |||
| Finnish | lasku | ||
| The word "lasku" also means "invoice" or "bill" in Finnish. | |||
| Hungarian | hanyatlás | ||
| "Hanyatlás" also means "slope" or "inclination" in Hungarian. | |||
| Latvian | samazināšanās | ||
| The Latvian word "samazināšanās" can also refer to a decrease in size, value, or quantity. | |||
| Lithuanian | nuosmukis | ||
| The Lithuanian word "nuosmukis" can also refer to a recess in a road or terrain, as well as a downturn in the economy. | |||
| Macedonian | опаѓање | ||
| The Macedonian word "опаѓање" can also refer to the shedding of leaves by trees. | |||
| Polish | upadek | ||
| The Polish word "upadek" can also mean "downfall" or "ruin". | |||
| Romanian | declin | ||
| The Romanian word 'declin' is derived from the Latin word 'declinare', meaning 'to bend down' or 'to move away'. | |||
| Russian | упасть | ||
| The word "упасть" can also mean "to fall", "to drop", or "to collapse". | |||
| Serbian | одбити | ||
| The word "одбити" in Serbian has Slavic roots and can also refer to "to hit" or "to reject."} | |||
| Slovak | pokles | ||
| In the Czech language, "pokles" means "progress" instead of "decline". | |||
| Slovenian | upadanje | ||
| In Slovenian this word shares the root upad with the word "padati", meaning "to fall" or "to drop". | |||
| Ukrainian | занепад | ||
| The word "занепад" in Ukrainian also has the alternate meaning of "devastation" or "destruction". | |||
Decline in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | পতন | ||
| The word "পতন" is derived from the Sanskrit word "patana", meaning "to fall" or "to decline". | |||
| Gujarati | ઘટાડો | ||
| The word "ઘટાડો" can also refer to a reduction in size, number, or degree. | |||
| Hindi | पतन | ||
| The word पतन (patana) originally meant "to fall or drop" or "to descend" and is related to the word पात (paata), meaning "falling" or "leaf". | |||
| Kannada | ಅವನತಿ | ||
| The Kannada word "ಅವನತಿ" means decline, or to go downhill, and is related to the word "ನತಿ", which means slope. | |||
| Malayalam | ഇടിവ് | ||
| The Malayalam word "ഇടിവ്" can also refer to the crashing of thunder or a landslide. | |||
| Marathi | नाकारणे | ||
| "नाकारणे" (nākārṇē) in Marathi can also mean "to reject," "to refuse," or "to deny." | |||
| Nepali | अस्वीकार | ||
| "अस्वीकार" is derived from Sanskrit and can also mean "disapproval" or "rejection". | |||
| Punjabi | ਗਿਰਾਵਟ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | පරිහානිය | ||
| The word "පරිහානිය" is derived from the Sanskrit word "परिहानि" (parihāni), which means "loss" or "deficiency." | |||
| Tamil | சரிவு | ||
| "சரிவு" (sarivu) is a Tamil word that can also mean 'destruction', 'dispersion', 'descent', 'loss', 'disgrace', or 'ruin'. | |||
| Telugu | క్షీణత | ||
| The Telugu word "క్షీణత" is borrowed from Sanskrit, and can also mean diminution. | |||
| Urdu | زوال | ||
| The word "زوال" also refers to the movement of celestial bodies or the passage of time. | |||
Decline in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 下降 | ||
| In etymology, “decline” derives from the Latin verb “declinare” (meaning "to lean" or "to slope"). | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 下降 | ||
| 下降 is also used metaphorically to describe a downturn in one's fortunes or health. | |||
| Japanese | 低下 | ||
| The word "低下" can also refer to a place name in Saitama, Japan, or to a type of sword in Japanese swordsmanship. | |||
| Korean | 쇠퇴 | ||
| "쇠퇴" can also mean "deformity" or "weakness". | |||
| Mongolian | буурах | ||
| 'Буурах' means not only 'decline', but also 'to be extinguished', 'to come to end'. It is the Mongolian equivalent of 'to cease' | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ကျဆင်း | ||
Decline in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | menurun | ||
| "Menurun" is derived from "turun" ("to descend") and was also historically used as an honorific prefix before personal names. | |||
| Javanese | nyuda | ||
| The root word `nyud` also appears in Javanese words referring to the `end' of body parts like fingers and toes (`nyudu`, a fingertip or toetip). | |||
| Khmer | ធ្លាក់ចុះ | ||
| The word "ធ្លាក់ចុះ" also means "to fall down" or "to decrease in quantity or value" in Khmer. | |||
| Lao | ຫຼຸດລົງ | ||
| Malay | merosot | ||
| "Merosot " is derived from the Sanskrit root "mṛṣ" meaning "to steal" and was used in Old Malay with a sense of "to slip away" and "to decline." | |||
| Thai | ลดลง | ||
| ลดลง comes from a Pali word meaning to "fall down." | |||
| Vietnamese | từ chối | ||
| The word "từ chối" is derived from the Chinese word "推辭", meaning "to refuse courteously". In Vietnamese, it can also mean "to give up" or "to avoid". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | tanggihan | ||
Decline in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | eniş | ||
| The word "eniş" also means "slope" in Azerbaijani. | |||
| Kazakh | құлдырау | ||
| "Құлдырау" also refers to losing consciousness or falling asleep. | |||
| Kyrgyz | төмөндөө | ||
| It has the alternate meaning 'to lower oneself, to go down'. | |||
| Tajik | таназзул | ||
| The Russian word "упадок" (decline) is an analog to the Tajik word "таназзул" and has the same meaning. | |||
| Turkmen | peselmegi | ||
| Uzbek | pasayish | ||
| "Pasayish" is related to the Sanskrit word "pashyati," meaning "to see". | |||
| Uyghur | تۆۋەنلەش | ||
Decline in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hoʻoliʻiliʻi | ||
| 'Hoʻoliʻiliʻi' can also refer to a state of neglect or deterioration. | |||
| Maori | whakaheke | ||
| The Maori word "whakaheke" also means "to make a mistake" or "to go astray"} | |||
| Samoan | paʻu | ||
| "Paʻu" derives from Proto-Polynesian "*faʻu" with the same meaning. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | tanggihan | ||
| The Tagalog word "tanggihan" can also refer to a type of traditional Filipino dance characterized by graceful and elegant movements. | |||
Decline in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | janiwsaña | ||
| Guarani | mbotove | ||
Decline in International Languages
| Esperanto | malkresko | ||
| In Esperanto, "malkresko" is also used to refer to the decline of a star or other celestial body. | |||
| Latin | declines | ||
| "Declines" originates from the Latin word "declinare", meaning "to bend", "to slope", or "to turn aside". | |||
Decline in Others Languages
| Greek | πτώση | ||
| The Greek word "πτώση" can also refer to a grammatical case or a fall in value. | |||
| Hmong | poob | ||
| The term poob is also sometimes pronounced poom. | |||
| Kurdish | paşvegerrî | ||
| The word 'paşvegerrî' is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root '*wes-' meaning 'to dwell,' and is cognate with the English word 'vestige.' | |||
| Turkish | düşüş | ||
| The word "düşüş" has an alternative meaning of "fall" in the context of a physical object or a person. | |||
| Xhosa | ukuhla | ||
| The word 'ukuhla' in Xhosa can also mean 'to be thin' or 'to be lean'. Its alternate meaning, 'to be slow' or 'to be sluggish', is used to describe the decline in health or vigor of a person or animal. | |||
| Yiddish | אַראָפּגיין | ||
| "אַראָפּגיין" also means "descend," "go down," or "lower" and is related to other Yiddish words for "down," such as "אַרְאַפּ" (arap) and "אַראָפּ" (arọp). | |||
| Zulu | ukuncipha | ||
| The Zulu word "ukuncipha" can also mean "to bow down" or "to submit". | |||
| Assamese | অস্বীকাৰ কৰা | ||
| Aymara | janiwsaña | ||
| Bhojpuri | मना क दिहल | ||
| Dhivehi | ދަށްވުން | ||
| Dogri | पतन | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | tanggihan | ||
| Guarani | mbotove | ||
| Ilocano | ipaid | ||
| Krio | go dɔŋ | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | ڕەتکردنەوە | ||
| Maithili | अवनति | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯔꯥꯏ ꯆꯥꯏꯊꯕ | ||
| Mizo | tlahniam | ||
| Oromo | gadi bu'uu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ହ୍ରାସ | ||
| Quechua | kutichipuy | ||
| Sanskrit | अस्वीकरोतु | ||
| Tatar | кимү | ||
| Tigrinya | ኣውድቅ | ||
| Tsonga | arile | ||