Taper Off (Verb)
Meaning 1
Become smaller or less active; "Business tapered off".
Classification
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc..
Examples
- Due to lack of customers, the café's sales tapered off by the end of the month.
- Tourism in the area begins to taper off once the winter season sets in.
- The construction company had to taper off its operations when funding for the project was cut short.
- Once she graduated from college, Rachel's party life began to taper off as she focused on her career.
- During the recession, the demand for luxury goods tapered off significantly as people tightened their budgets.
Hypernyms
Meaning 2
End weakly; "The music just petered out--there was no proper ending".
Classification
Verbs of being, having, spatial relations.
Examples
- The fireworks display began with a bang but seemed to taper off towards the end.
- The intense protests eventually taper off as the government addressed the concerns of the people.
- The band's setlist started out strong but began to taper off with the less popular songs.
- Her initial enthusiasm for the project started to taper off as the deadline drew near.
- The comedy sketch tapered off with a weak and confusing punchline that left the audience silent.