Definition of "downward" []

• In, to, or toward a lower place, level, or position: floating downward. (adverb)
• Toward a lower position in a hierarchy or on a socioeconomic scale: slid downward into poverty. (adverb)
• Toward the feet or lower parts: clothed from the waist downward. (adverb)
• Toward a lower amount, degree, or rank: stocks plummeted downward. (adverb)
• From a prior source or earlier time: passed downward through the ages. (adverb)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Inzko added these developments are the latest in what he called a downward trend in political stability in Bosnia for the past five years."
• "In each case, he was seen to take them in what we call a downward direction."
• "And, Steenie, if you can hold your tongue about this matter, you shall sit, from this term downward, at an easier rent."