attrition
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attrition
- /əˈtɹɪʃən/ US
- /əˈtɹɪʃn̩/ UK
Rhymes with -ɪʃən
Where it comes from
First attested in the 15th century, from Middle English attricion, attricioun, from Middle French attricion, attrition and its etymon, Latin attrītiō (“a rubbing against”), from the verb attrītus, past participle of atterō (“to wear”), from ad- (“to, towards”) + terō (“to rub”). By surface analysis, attrit + -ion.
noun attritions
-
Grinding down or wearing away by friction.
Opposite: accretion
-
The wearing of teeth due to their grinding.
Opposite: accretion
-
A gradual reduction in number.
Recent years have seen […] more and more blatant reversals of previous Supreme Court decisions in favor of the constitutional rights of minorities. These increasingly conservative decisions, and constant attrition of individuals' rights, have directly paralleled the alarming increase of convictions
Opposite: accretion
-
A gradual, natural reduction in membership or personnel, as through injury, incapacitation, retirement, resignation, or death.
Similar: natural wastage · Opposite: accretion
-
The loss of participants during an experiment.
Opposite: accretion
-
The loss of a first or second language or a portion of that language.
Opposite: accretion
- Imperfect contrition or remorse.
verb attritions · attritioning · attritioned
-
To grind or wear down through friction.
attritioned teeth; attritioned rock
Similar: attrit
- To reduce the number of (jobs or workers) by not hiring new employees to fill positions that become vacant (often with out). […] but the heart of the health services in New York will have to attrition out some 3,000 to 5,000 jobs.
- To undergo a reduction in number. The cohort of one hundred students had attritioned to sixty by the end of secondary school.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: abrasion, detrition, grinding, contrition, contriteness, corrasion, friction, leakage, seepage, depuration, depletion, decline, exhaustion, fatigue, decrease, drop-out
Translations
Every language
noun wearing by friction
| Español | abrasión |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 磨耗 mamō |
| 中文 | 磨損 /磨损 mósǔn |
| Português | atrito |
| Français | usure |
| Deutsch | Verschleiß, Abnutzung, Abrieb, Zermürbung, Abreibung, Abschürfung |
| Ελληνικά | τριβή triví |
| Русский | истира́ние istiránije, стира́ние stiránije, тре́ние trénije |
| עברית | שחיקה shkhika |
noun wearing of teeth
| Español | desgaste dental |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | Abnutzung, Abrieb |
| Ελληνικά | φθορά fthorá |
| עברית | שחיקת שיניים shkhikat shina'im |
noun reduction in membership or personnel
| 日本語 | 消耗 shōmō |
|---|---|
| Français | départs volontaires |
| Deutsch | Abgang, Arbeitskräfteabgang, natürlicher Abgang |
| Русский | у́быль персона́ла úbylʹ personála |
noun loss of a first or second language or a portion of that language
| Deutsch | Verlust, Sprachverlust |
|---|
noun theology: imperfect contrition or remorse
| Español | atrición |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | unvollkommene Reue |
Talk about this word "attrition." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/attrition. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. attrition. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/attrition "attrition." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/attrition.Cite this
@misc{attrition_2026,
title = {attrition},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/attrition},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
