Skip to main content
deceleration

deceleration

10 5.5
A slowing down of speed or rate of change
  • noun
  • /ˌdiːsɛləˈreɪʃən/
translation icon : desaceleración
  • The gait laboratory has a walkway about 10 m long, including acceleration and deceleration distances.
  • deceleration rate
  • deceleration in growth
  • significant deceleration

So what we're going to see is do I want you to say is just this deceleration of appreciation is not the same thing as depreciation.

Examples

  • The car experienced a gradual deceleration as it approached the red light.

  • Brace for deceleration.

  • There is still the question of fuel: does the ship have enough fuel left for a safe deceleration?

  • Thus, the acceleration and deceleration of walking were not included in the recorded data.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Your negative deceleration should be 25 and your ground speed should be 355 and dropping.

  • If the fuel holds out through the re-entry deceleration, we can set her down safely.

  • Social and economic policies are, of course, partly responsible for Western Europe's economic deceleration.

    Academic text (2007)
  • We had to begin the deceleration maneuver so the ship could approach a black hole, one of the closest in our galaxy.

  • And right now, the Hermes is headed towards you... starting its month-long deceleration to intercept.

  • A row of accumulators slows this railcar simulator with a deceleration rate that matches the real thing.

    Academic text (2000)

Synonyms

slowdown
vsdeceleration
53 3.7

A time when activity or progress becomes slower than usual

describes the act or process that reduces speed, not the whole period
slowing
vsdeceleration
13 2.7

A decrease in how fast something moves or happens

is the process that causes that reduction rather than the result
retardation
vsdeceleration
1 7.7

A slowing down that makes progress take longer

focuses on reducing speed itself rather than delay or broad progress issues

Antonyms

acceleration
  • Specialized
27 3.7

A faster speed at which something happens or grows

How Slow

stop
310 1.0
deceleration
10 5.5
slowdown
53 3.7

Surface Forms

deceleration singular
decelerations plural

Morphology

deceleration = decelerate (semi-transparent) = de + celer + ate + ion

For learners who know the verb 'decelerate', adding '-ion' straightforwardly forms the noun for the act or process.

Etymology

The word deceleration breaks into de- meaning 'down' or 'reverse' and celer meaning 'quick' or 'fast', the same idea you see in accelerate ('make faster'). So, deceleration is the action of making something less fast — in other words, slowing down.