Dwindled
/ˈdwɪn.dəld/noun
Became gradually smaller, weaker, or less important.
Did you know?Dwindle began as the Middle English verb “dwinen,” meaning “to waste away,” and its repeated-sounding form helped express gradual disappearance.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
Proto-Germanic
*dwinaną
“To waste away, diminish, or fade”
Old English
Old English
dwinan
“To languish, waste away, or dwindle”
Middle English
Middle English
dwinen
“To diminish or become feeble”
14th–15th Century
Middle English
dwindlen
“To become gradually smaller or weaker; an extended form of dwinen”
16th Century
English
dwindle
“To diminish gradually”
Modern English
English
dwindled
“Became smaller, weaker, or less significant”