Meaning & use
deceleration
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountable
The act or process of slowing down, or the rate at which a moving thing loses speed.
Grammar: Usually uncountable: the car's deceleration was sudden.
Patterns
- the deceleration of something
- deceleration from something to something
The passengers felt a strong deceleration as the train approached the station.
Engineers measured the deceleration of the car during the crash test.
Hard braking causes rapid deceleration.
nouncountable or uncountablefigurative
A slowdown in the pace of growth or activity, especially in an economy.
Grammar: Often followed by in or of: a deceleration in growth.
Patterns
- a deceleration in something
- a deceleration of something
Analysts warned of a deceleration in consumer spending.
The deceleration of population growth surprised the researchers.
There has been a clear deceleration since the spring.
Word forms
| plural | decelerations |
|---|
Common combinations
- rapid deceleration
- Rapid deceleration can injure the neck in a collision.
- sudden deceleration
- The sudden deceleration threw the cargo forward.
- deceleration in growth
- The report shows a deceleration in growth across the sector.
- gradual deceleration
- A gradual deceleration is easier on the engine and the passengers.
- deceleration rate
- The deceleration rate depends on the road surface.
Synonyms and how they differ
- slowdown
- Slowdown is the everyday word, especially for business or traffic, while deceleration sounds more technical or measured.
- braking
- Braking names the action of applying brakes, but deceleration describes the resulting loss of speed, however it happens.
- retardation
- Retardation is a rarer, more scientific term for slowing and is often avoided because of its other meanings.
- decline
- Decline suggests a fall to a lower level, whereas deceleration only says the rate of change is getting smaller.
Opposites
Word family
- decelerate verb
- to slow down or make something slow down
- decelerating adjective
- becoming slower
- accelerate verb
- the opposite verb, to speed up
- acceleration noun
- the opposite noun, a gain in speed
Commonly confused: deceleration or declaration?
deceleration vs declaration
A declaration is a formal statement; it only looks similar and has nothing to do with speed.
Practice
The scientists measured the ___ of the capsule as the parachute opened and it slowed sharply.
Choose one answer.
The capsule is losing speed, so deceleration fits. Acceleration is the opposite, and declaration is a formal statement.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “deceleration”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.