# descend

> English word · Verb · IPA /dɪˈsɛnd/ · frequency rank #14,738

## Definitions
1. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
2. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
3. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
4. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
5. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
6. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
7. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
8. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
9. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
10. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
11. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
12. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
13. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
14. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
15. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
16. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
17. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
18. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
19. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
20. Senses relating to moving from a higher to a lower position.
21. Senses relating to passing down from a source to another thing.
22. Senses relating to passing down from a source to another thing.
23. Senses relating to passing down from a source to another thing.
24. Senses relating to passing down from a source to another thing.

## Etymology
PIE word
 *de
The verb is derived from Middle English descenden (“to move downwards, fall, descend; to slope downwards; to go from a better to a worse condition, decline, degenerate; to be a descendant, derive from (a source); etc.”), from Anglo-Norman descendere, descendre, and Old French descendere, descendre (“to move downwards, fall, descend; to slope downwards; to be a descendant, derive from (a source); etc.”) (modern French descendre), and from their etymon Latin dēscendere, the present active infinitive of dēscendō (“to come or go down, fall, descend; to slope downwards; to be a descendant; etc.”), from de- (prefix meaning ‘from; down from’) + scandō (“to ascend, climb; to clamber”) (from Proto-Indo-European *skend- (“to climb, scale; to dart; to jump”)).
The noun is derived from the verb.

## Easily confused with
- **descent** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/descend-vs-descent)
- **Desmond** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/descend-vs-desmond)
- **descended** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/descend-vs-descended)
- **defend** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/defend-vs-descend)
- **decent** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/decent-vs-descend)
- **depend** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/depend-vs-descend)

## Common misspellings (11)
`ddescend`, `decsend`, `desccend`, `descedn`, `descendd`, `descennd`, `descned`, `desecnd`, `desscend`, `dsecend`, `edscend`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/descend