ascending adjective. [ǝ'sɛndɪŋ] E17.
[from ASCEND verb + -ING².]
1. Rising, mounting, increasing; sloping upwards. E17.
ascending letter Typography & Palaeography a letter with a part or stroke projecting above letters such as x.
■ Dryden Bak'd in the Sunshine of ascending Fields.
■ Pope Dark o'er the fields th' ascending vapour flies.
■ F. A. G. Ouseley The diminished fifth..should be prepared by a sixth, with an ascending bass.
■ A. J. P. Taylor Three tasks in ascending order of difficulty.

2. a. Anatomy. Directed upwards; spec. (of a nerve etc.) passing up the spinal cord to the brain. E18.
b. Botany. Of a stem etc.: inclined upwards, esp. with steepness increasing from the base. M19.

3. Going backwards in genealogical order. E18.
■ Burke The ascending collateral branch was much regarded amongst the ancient Germans.

[TahlilGaran] English Dictionary ▲