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lower. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
lower, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
lower in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
lower you have here. The definition of the word
lower will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
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English
Etymology 1
low + -er (comparative suffix)
Pronunciation
Adjective
lower
- comparative form of low: more low
- bottom; more towards the bottom than the middle of an object
- Situated on lower ground, nearer a coast, or more southerly.
- Lower Manhattan
- Lower Burgundy
- (geology, of strata or geological time periods) older
Antonyms
- (antonym(s) of "more low"): higher
- (antonym(s) of "bottom"): upper
- (antonym(s) of "older"): upper
Derived terms
Translations
more towards the bottom
- Arabic: أَدْنَى m (ʔadnā), دُنْيَا (ar) f (dunyā), أَسْفَل m (ʔasfal), سُفْلَى f (suflā)
- Azerbaijani: aşağı (az)
- Belarusian: ні́жні (nížni)
- Bulgarian: до́лен (bg) (dólen), по́-до́лен (bg) (pó-dólen)
- Catalan: inferior (ca)
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 下的 (zh) (xià de)
- Czech: spodní (cs), dolní (cs)
- Egyptian: (ẖrj)
- Even: хэрги (hərgi)
- Evenki: хэргу (hərgu)
- French: inférieur (fr)
- Georgian: ქვემო (kvemo)
- German: unterer (de)
- Greek:
- Ancient: κατώτερος (katṓteros), κάτω (kátō)
- Hebrew: תַּחְתּוֹן (he) (takhtón)
- Hungarian: alsó (hu)
- Italian: inferiore (it)
- Japanese: 下の (ja) (したの, shita no)
- Korean: 아래의 (ko) (arae'ui)
- Kyrgyz: астынкы (ky) (astınkı)
- Latin: inferior
- Macedonian: долен (dolen), подолен (podolen)
- Manchu: ᡶᡝᠵᡝᡵᡤᡳ (fejergi)
- Mongolian: доод (mn) (dood), дорд (mn) (dord)
- Nanai: пэгуй (peguj)
- Norwegian:
- Bokmål: nedre
- Nynorsk: nedre
- Polish: dolny (pl)
- Portuguese: inferior (pt)
- Romanian: mai jos, inferior (ro)
- Russian: ни́жний (ru) (nížnij)
- Serbo-Croatian:
- Cyrillic: до̑њӣ, сподњи (Kajkavian)
- Roman: dȏnjī (sh), spodnji (Kajkavian)
- Slovak: spodný, dolný (sk)
- Slovene: spodnji
- Spanish: inferior (es)
- Swedish: nedre (sv)
- Tocharian B: ñormye
- Turkish: aşağı (tr)
- Ukrainian: ни́жній (nýžnij)
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Adverb
lower
- comparative form of low: more low
Verb
lower (third-person singular simple present lowers, present participle lowering, simple past and past participle lowered)
- (transitive) To let descend by its own weight, as something suspended; to let down
lower a bucket into a well
to lower a sail of a boat
- 1833 (first publication), Alfred Tennyson, A Dream of Fair Women
- Lower'd softly with a threefold cord of love
Down to a silent grave.
1960 September, “Talking of Trains: New level-crossing signs”, in Trains Illustrated, page 519:At level crossings where there are to be half-barriers, train-operated through track-circuiting, the barriers will be timed to lower fully about five seconds before the fastest train can reach the crossing.
- (transitive) to pull down
- to lower a flag
- (transitive) To reduce the height of
- lower a fence or wall
- lower a chimney or turret
- (transitive) To depress as to direction
- lower the aim of a gun
- (transitive) To make less elevated
- to lower one's ambition, aspirations, or hopes
- (transitive) To reduce the degree, intensity, strength, etc., of
- lower the temperature
- lower one's vitality
- lower distilled liquors
Please lower your voices. This is a library.
- (transitive) To bring down; to humble
- lower one's pride
- (reflexive) To humble oneself; to do something one considers to be beneath one's dignity.
- I could never lower myself enough to buy second-hand clothes.
- (transitive) To reduce (something) in value, amount, etc.
- lower the price of goods
- lower the interest rate
- (intransitive) To fall; to sink; to grow less; to diminish; to decrease
- The river lowered as rapidly as it rose.
- (intransitive) To decrease in value, amount, etc.
- (computing, transitive) To reduce operations to single machine instructions, as part of compilation of a program.
Synonyms
- (let (something) descend by its own weight, such as a bucket or sail): bring down
- (reduce the height of, as a fence or chimney): shorten
- (depress as to direction, as a gun):
- (make less elevated as to object, as ambitions or hopes): reduce
- (reduce the degree, intensity, strength, etc., of, as temperature): reduce, turn down
- (transitive: to humble):
- (reflexive: to humble oneself): be humble
- (reduce (something) in value, amount, etc): cut, reduce
- (intransitive: grow less): die off, drop, fall, fall off, shrink
- (intransitive: decrease in value): become/get smaller, become/get lower, lessen, reduce
Derived terms
Translations
let (something) descend by its own weight, such as a bucket or sail
- Arabic: أَنْزَلَ (ʔanzala)
- Moroccan Arabic: هبط (habbaṭ)
- Armenian: իջեցնել (hy) (iǰecʻnel), ցածրացնել (hy) (cʻacracʻnel)
- Bulgarian: спускам (bg) (spuskam)
- Catalan: baixar (ca), abaixar (ca)
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 降低 (zh) (jiàngdī), 放下 (zh) (fàngxià), 低下 (zh) (dīxià)
- Czech: spustit (cs)
- Esperanto: malaltigi (eo) mallevi
- Finnish: laskea (fi)
- French: faire descendre (bucket, etc.), abaisser (fr), amener (fr) (sail, flag)
- Gallurese: abbacà
- Georgian: დაშვება (dašveba), დაწევა (dac̣eva)
- German: herunterlassen (de)
- Greek: χαμηλώνω (el) (chamilóno)
- Hungarian: leenged (hu)
- Irish: ísligh
- Italian: abbassare (it)
- Japanese: 下げる (ja) (さげる, sageru), 下ろす (ja) (おろす, orosu)
- Kabuverdianu: baxa, baxá
- Kurdish:
- Central Kurdish: شۆڕ کردن (şorr kirdin)
- Ladino: abashar
- Latin: discedo (la), dēmittō
- Lombard: bassà
- Maori: whakahaka, whakaheke, whakamahuru
- Oromo: buusuu
- Persian: کشیدن (fa) (kešidan)
- Polish: opuszczać (pl) impf, opuścić (pl) pf
- Portuguese: abaixar (pt), descer (pt), baixar (pt)
- Russian: опуска́ть (ru) impf (opuskátʹ), опусти́ть (ru) pf (opustítʹ), спуска́ть (ru) impf (spuskátʹ), спусти́ть (ru) pf (spustítʹ), снижа́ть (ru) impf (snižátʹ), сни́зить (ru) pf (snízitʹ), понижа́ть (ru) impf (ponižátʹ), пони́зить (ru) pf (ponízitʹ)
- Sardinian:
- Campidanese: abbasciài
- Logudorese: abbassiare
- Sassarese: abbascià
- Scottish Gaelic: sìolaidh
- Serbo-Croatian: spustiti (sh), sniziti (sh)
- Spanish: bajar (es)
- Old Spanish: abaxar
- Swahili: kushusha
- Swedish: vira ned, vira ner, sänka (sv)
- Turkish: indirmek (tr)
- Walloon: dischinde (wa) (bucket, flag), abaxhî (wa) (sail)
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reduce the height of, as a fence or chimney
depress as to direction, as a gun
make less elevated as to object, as ambitions or hopes
reduce the degree, intensity, strength, etc., of, as temperature
- Azerbaijani: azaltmaq (az), aşağı salmaq
- Bulgarian: свалям (bg) (svaljam)
- Catalan: disminuir (ca), baixar (ca)
- Esperanto: malaltigi (eo)
- Finnish: laskea (fi), alentaa (fi)
- French: baisser (fr), diminuer (fr), abaisser (fr)
- Greek: χαμηλώνω (el) (chamilóno)
- Hungarian: csökkent (hu)
- Irish: ísligh
- Italian: abbassare (it)
- Latin: subsum
- Norman: baîssi
- Portuguese: diminuir (pt), abaixar (pt), baixar (pt)
- Russian: снижа́ть (ru) impf (snižátʹ), сни́зить (ru) pf (snízitʹ), понижа́ть (ru) impf (ponižátʹ), пони́зить (ru) pf (ponízitʹ)
- Serbo-Croatian: sniziti (sh)
- Spanish: bajar (es), abajar (es)
- Swedish: sänka (sv)
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reflexive: to humble oneself
reduce (something) in value, amount, etc.
- Bulgarian: понижавам (bg) (ponižavam)
- Catalan: baixar (ca), disminuir (ca), reduir (ca)
- Esperanto: malaltigi (eo)
- Finnish: alentaa (fi)
- French: baisser (fr), abaisser (fr), diminuer (fr), réduire (fr)
- Greek: κατεβάζω (el) (katevázo)
- Hungarian: leenged (hu)
- Irish: ísligh
- Norman: baîssi
- Portuguese: diminuir (pt), reduzir (pt)
- Russian: снижа́ть (ru) impf (snižátʹ), сни́зить (ru) pf (snízitʹ), понижа́ть (ru) impf (ponižátʹ), пони́зить (ru) pf (ponízitʹ)
- Serbo-Croatian: sniziti (sh)
- Swedish: sänka (sv), minska (sv), beskära (sv)
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intransitive: to decrease in value
Etymology 2
Pronunciation
Verb
lower (third-person singular simple present lowers, present participle lowering, simple past and past participle lowered)
- Alternative spelling of lour
c. 1593 (date written), [William Shakespeare], The Tragedy of King Richard the Third. (First Quarto), London: Valentine Sims for Andrew Wise, , published 1597, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:Now is the winter of our diſcontent, / Made glorious ſummer by this ſonne of Yorke: / And all the cloudes that lowrd vpon our houſe, / In the deepe boſome of the Ocean buried.
1846, R[obert] S[tephen] Hawker, “The Wreck”, in Echoes from Old Cornwall, London: Joseph Masters, , →OCLC, stanza X, page 76:And still when loudliest howls the storm, / And darkliest lowers his native sky, / The king's fierce soul is in that form, / The warrior's spirit threatens nigh!
Related terms
Anagrams
Scanian
Etymology
From Old Norse lágr, from Proto-Germanic *lēgaz.
Pronunciation
Adjective
lower m
- low