ratcheted (down)

verb

variants also racheted (down)
past tense of ratchet (down)
as in decreased
to grow less in scope or intensity especially gradually news stories about the kidnapping will ratchet down as the weeks go by

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for ratcheted (down)
  1. decreased
  2. diminished
  3. ebbed
  4. shrank
  5. fell
  6. declined
  7. tapered off
Verb
  • In some cases, LinkedIn says views of content classified as AI spam have decreased by as much as 40 percent.
    — Gene Marks, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Travel data shows the average group size for trips has decreased since COVID-19 began.
    — Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of decreased
Verb
  • Inside one, the individual is both multiplied and diminished.
    — Jerry Saltz, Vulture, 2 Sep. 2026
  • The persuasiveness of these efforts, however, is diminished when a WRO is modified without transparency and despite readily accessible evidence indicating that conditions for the workers have not truly improved.
    — Charity Ryerson, Footwear News, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of diminished
Verb
  • As farming ebbed, the water stored in those reservoirs helped the area's cities and suburbs become one of the nation's fastest growing urban areas.
    — Alex Hager, NPR, 31 Aug. 2026
  • This is true if focusing on the standard price-to-earnings ratio, which has ebbed from 23 to 20 in the past 10 months.
    — Michael Santoli, CNBC, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of ebbed
Verb
  • Other brands have simply shrunk their bottles, the better to transport them in your pocket, around your neck, attached to your key chain or perhaps on a chatelaine around your waist.
    — Chloe Schama, Vogue, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Washington — The unemployment gap between young high school graduates and their counterparts who obtained a bachelor’s degree or higher has shrunk steadily over the past few years in a sign of structural shifts happening in the US economy.
    — Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of shrank
Verb
  • Rincker, a German immigrant, was known for casting the bell that hung from the first Cook County Courthouse, which was felled by the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.
    — Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Frightened that she may be plagued by the same mental illness that felled her mom, Gemma stubbornly refuses to believe anything is wrong.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of fell
Verb
  • Trump has declined so far to endorse a successor, opting to keep his cards close ahead of what’s likely to be a bitter race.
    — Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 29 Aug. 2026
  • When asked about the lack of any tributes or the evening’s plans to honor Nolan, the Ocean Springs School District declined to comment.
    — Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of declined
Verb
  • The conditions were wet and and slippery at first, but the rain appears to have tapered off now.
    — NBC News, NBC news, 28 June 2026
  • And several of the unflattering stats have tapered off a ton this last year, including sacks taken (27 in 2025, down from 62 in 2023).
    — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 24 June 2026
Definition of tapered off
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.

Browse Nearby Words

ratchet (down)
ratcheted (down)
ratcheted (up)
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Cite this Entry

“Ratcheted (down).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ratcheted%20%28down%29. Accessed 3 Sep. 2026.

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