# dwindle

> English word · Verb · IPA /ˈdwɪn.dəl/ · frequency rank #46,434

## Definitions
1. To decrease, shrink, diminish, reduce in size or intensity.
2. To fall away in quality; degenerate, sink.
3. To lessen; to bring low.
4. To break up or disperse.

## Etymology
Frequentative form of dwine, from Middle English dwinen, from Old English dwīnan (“to waste away”), from Proto-West Germanic *dwīnan, from Proto-Germanic *dwīnaną. It is equivalent to dwine + -le, akin to Old Norse dvena, dvína, Dutch verdwijnen (“to disappear, dwindle”).

## Easily confused with
- **dingle** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/dingle-vs-dwindle)

## Common misspellings (11)
`ddwindle`, `diwndle`, `dwidnle`, `dwinddle`, `dwindel`, `dwindlle`, `dwinlde`, `dwinndle`, `dwnidle`, `dwwindle`, `wdindle`

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