descendence
Movement toward below
Descendence is a rare variant of descent or descendance, referring to the act or process of descending, or the condition of being descended from an ancestor.
It appears occasionally in formal or literary contexts where descent would be more common: The descendence of the royal line was traced through seven generations.
Most style guides and editors prefer descent for general use.
Family line of descent
- bloodlineAncestry through generations
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
- genealogyStudy of family descent
- pedigreeRecord of descent
dynasty · clan · lineage · forebears · progenitors · ancestors · posterity · progeny
Fall or release
- fallDescend under gravity
- plungeSudden steep descent
- loweringMoving something downward
- sinkingFalling through water
downward · slope · declivity · gradient · gravity · swoop · dive · cascade
Process of declining quality
- decayGradual organic breakdown
- degradationDecline in condition
- degenerationProgressive loss of function
- worseningBecoming more severe
atrophy · devolution · retrogression · enfeeblement · debilitation · impairment · decrepitude · declension
ancestry
Family line of descent
- bloodlineAncestry through generations
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
- genealogyStudy of family descent
pedigree · dynasty · clan · lineage · forebears · progenitors · ancestors · posterity · progeny · offspring
drop
Fall or release
sinking · downward · slope · declivity · gradient · gravity · swoop · dive · cascade
deterioration
Process of declining quality
- decayGradual organic breakdown
- degradationDecline in condition
- degenerationProgressive loss of function
worsening · atrophy · devolution · retrogression · enfeeblement · debilitation · impairment · decrepitude · declension · wane
descendenceascent
Upward movement
ascendence · ascension · rise · rising · climbing
descendenceancestry
Family line of descent
ascendance · antecedence · origin · parentage · lineage
descendenceascendance
State of rising dominance
rise · advancement · elevation · improvement · progression