Both Uses of
descend
in
The Great Gatsby
- The Carraways are something of a clan, and we have a tradition that we're descended from the Dukes of Buccleuch, but the actual founder of my line was my grandfather's brother, who came here in fifty-one, sent a substitute to the Civil War, and started the wholesale hardware business that my father carries on today.
p. 3..1 (definition 1) *descended = related through an ancestor
- With Jordan's slender golden arm resting in mine, we descended the steps and sauntered about the garden.
p. 43..3 (definition 2) *descended = moved down
Definitions:
-
(1) (descend as in: descend from royalty) figuratively, to have come down a path from the past; i.e., to originate or come from -- such as in reference to ancestors or evolutionary origins
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(2) (descend as in: descend the mountain) move or slope downward