DEF: 1. Origin, ancestry of a person. 2. Going down.
EX: 1. President Obama is of Kenyan descent 2. There are close to 2 million people of Vietnamese descent in the US.
Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
descent (noun)1.
a) derivation from an ancestor - birth lineage of French descent
b) transmission or devolution of an estate by inheritance usually in the line - descending
c) the fact or process of originating from an ancestral stock
d) the shaping or development in nature and character by transmission from a source - derivation
2.
the act or process of descending
3.
a step downward in a scale of gradation , specifically one generation in an ancestral line or genealogical scale
4.
a) an inclination downward - slope
b) a descending way (as a downgrade or stairway)
c) obsolete the lowest part
5.
a) - attack invasion
b) a sudden disconcerting appearance (as for a visit)
6.
a downward step (as in station or value) - decline descent of the family to actual poverty
Synonyms:
ancestry
