🇵🇹Portuguese Source WordCode: PT

espiral descendente

Pronunciation / Transliteration: esh-pi-rahl deh-sen-den-teh

🇬🇧 Direct English Meaning:
Downward spiral/ˈdaʊn.wɚd ˈspaɪ.rəl/
nounCEFR C1 (Advanced)Top #4500 frequency
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🇵🇹 Example Sentence in Portuguese:

"O país entrou numa espiral descendente de inflação."

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As noun
  1. 1

    A continuous, worsening deterioration or decline in a situation, economy, or emotional state, where each negative event causes a subsequent worse event.

    "The company entered a downward spiral after its primary product was recalled."
  2. 2

    A progressive worsening of mental health or personal habits, leading toward crisis.

    "Without support, he felt himself falling into a familiar emotional downward spiral."

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Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

Derived from the combination of the Old English root 'dune' (down) combined with 'ward', and the Greek-derived 'speira' (spiral) via Latin. The idiomatic phrase emerged in the mid-20th century, metaphorically combining the continuous circular motion of a spiral with a persistent downward trajectory of worsening conditions.

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