SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
depopulation
noun
A substantial reduction in the number of people living in a place.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Reduction of inhabitants
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topDepopulation describes reduced inhabitants; it does not specify whether migration, deaths, or another process caused it.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See depopulation in use
The novel traces the village's depopulation as families move away.
Depopulation reduced the station's permanent residents from eighty to twelve after its main program ended and most staff moved elsewhere.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license