weakening 1 of 3

noun

as in deterioration
a gradual sinking and wasting away of mind or body the all-too-apparent weakening of our grandfather was hard on our mother

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

weakening

2 of 3

adjective

as in draining

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weakening

3 of 3

verb

present participle of weaken
1
as in softening
to diminish the physical strength of weeks of hardship in the desert had greatly weakened them

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2
as in fading
to lose bodily strength or vigor the bodybuilder weakened once she eased off on her workouts

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3
as in diluting
to alter (something) for the worse with the addition of foreign or lower-grade substances weakened the juice with too much water

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of weakening
Noun
The hurricane center said the storm's intensity could fluctuate over the next few days but would likely maintain hurricane strength through Thursday, with gradual weakening forecast thereafter. — CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026 The networks learn to recognize patterns by strengthening and weakening connections between nodes in response to training data. — Quanta Magazine, 12 Oct. 2026 Under the previous administration, Brazil’s audiovisual industry suffered from the closure of the Ministry of Culture, the suspension of the Audiovisual Sector Fund, the weakening of cultural institutions, and allegations of censorship. — Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 10 Oct. 2026 More rain is expected in the region as a weakening Isaias moves north. — Charles Minshew, AJC.com, 10 Oct. 2026 Sedentary middle-aged men and women lose about 10 percent of their strength and mass each decade, weakening knees, too. — Aaron Steckelberg, Washington Post, 9 Oct. 2026 By Wednesday next week, the moisture plume from the weakening storm will arrive in Arizona and New Mexico with the potential for flash floods and lingering tropical showers throughout the desert. — Sean MacAday, Sacbee.com, 23 Sep. 2026 The first sign that El Niño is developing is a weakening, or even reversal, of the tropical Pacific trade winds. — Steven Paton, The Conversation, 10 Sep. 2026 Maximum sustained winds have decreased to around 65 mph with higher gusts, and gradual weakening is forecast during the next few days, according to the hurricane center. — Gabe Hauari, USA Today, 9 Sep. 2026
Verb
OpenAI disclosed a pair of safety incidents that involved AI agents weakening their safety monitoring systems during internal coding tasks. — Emma Roth, The Verge, 21 Oct. 2026 Meanwhile, weakening brand loyalty threatens an advantage established manufacturers have relied on for decades. — Matthew Tan, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2026 Sunday, the upper-level ridge will begin weakening and gradually shifting eastward, allowing additional cloud cover to spread into parts of North Texas. — Michael Autovino, CBS News, 20 Oct. 2026 Now, the organization overseeing medical residency programs — the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) — has proposed weakening the rules that gave me some respite. — Arifeen Rahman, STAT, 20 Oct. 2026 Higher participation would increase Arab representation and could push marginal right-wing parties below the electoral threshold, weakening Netanyahu’s prospects of forming a government. — Tamir Sorek, The Conversation, 20 Oct. 2026 Data released Tuesday shows the housing market weakening sharply, squeezed by rising mortgage rates and elevated home prices. — ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026 Such restraint is not evidence that the axis is weakening but rather a defining feature of how these partnerships work. — Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Foreign Affairs, 16 Oct. 2026 Wind speeds were expected in the 50 to 70 mph range through early afternoon Friday before gradually weakening. — Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for weakening
  1. deterioration
  2. draining
  3. softening
  4. fading
  5. diluting
  6. debilitating
  7. wasting
  8. sagging
Noun
  • International monitors have warned of a deterioration in political rights and civil liberties worldwide.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Milder temperatures and heavy rainstorms have led to more deterioration and flooding on streets and sidewalks.
    — Sabrina Franza, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of deterioration
Adjective
  • This is a good time to organize the list, clarify expectations, or make a routine feel less draining.
    — Tarot.com, The Orlando Sentinel, 9 Aug. 2026
  • Speaking of the part of van life spent behind the wheel, Volkswagen has slightly reworked the Grand California's driver-assistance suite to make driving a little less draining.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 10 July 2026
Definition of draining
Verb
  • Medik8 Advanced Night Ceramide is a rich overnight cream that helps replenish dry skin while softening the look of crepiness, fine lines, and rough texture.
    — Christa Joanna Lee, Glamour, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Scientists at the Beckman Institute have been tracking levels of plastic-softening phthalates in the blood of children since before they were born up until age 11.
    — Michael Hawthorne, Chicago Tribune, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of softening
Verb
  • Fighting autocracy and inequality The Ford Foundation frames its new plan as its answer to rising autocracy, widening inequality, and fading public trust.
    — Sydney Lake, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
  • In Brazil, Lula also faces fading support even among parts of his base as the economic backdrop looks different from the one that accompanied his first presidency.
    — Alessandra Freitas, CNN Money, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of fading
Verb
  • The filing shed more light on Meta's plan to create a new class of non-voting stock, Class C, in January to help finance investments and acquisitions without diluting CEO Mark Zuckerberg's voting control.
    — Alexa LoMonaco, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026
  • This method prevents nitrogen from diluting the exhaust gas, which hinders combustion and keeps the CO₂ concentration relatively low.
    — Muskan Bhatia, Interesting Engineering, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of diluting
Adjective
  • According to the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), threats to these sectors can create debilitating impacts on the economy, public health and safety.
    — Julie Song, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2026
  • That’s a good thing, in the sense that even if a child is infected, the vast majority do not develop debilitating, and potentially fatal, consequences.
    — Eli Cahan, Rolling Stone, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of debilitating
Verb
  • The challenge is integrating these capabilities into a defense that can quickly identify threats, select an appropriate response, and avoid wasting expensive interceptors on inexpensive drones.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 25 Oct. 2026
  • The city of Milwaukee waited 46 years to see its team in the Fall Classic, and this year's Brewers wanted to stop wasting time.
    — Ryan Morik OutKick, FOXNews.com, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of wasting
Verb
  • Aside from obvious fixes like leaking ceilings and sagging floors, the layout, which was chopped up into a warren of tight quarters, needed a full gut to allow the space to breathe and gain more light.
    — Juliet Izon, Architectural Digest, 27 Oct. 2026
  • The formula also has jojoba-seed extract, which is rich in vitamins to help soothe and tone, as well as turmeric root extract, which works to combat redness and discoloration that can come along with sagging.
    — Alanna Martine Kilkeary, Glamour, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of sagging

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Cite this Entry

“Weakening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/weakening. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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