All 3 Uses of
recede
in
The Memory Keeper’s Daughter
- Whatever Al was saying receded, merging with Leo's footsteps upstairs and the rush of traffic outside, sounds that Caroline would forever afterward remember as being lucky.†
p. 104.9receded = move away or diminished (became less)
- Coral, he realized, from the trip to Aruba, brain coral with its flesh receded, leaving only the intricate skeletal framework.†
p. 215.3
- Voices swelled as people drew near, then receded, scraps of conversation drifting like bits of paper borne on the wind.†
p. 243.0 *
Definition:
to move away or diminish (become less)
The exact meaning of recede depends upon its context. For example:
- "We can't move back in until the floodwaters recede." -- diminish and move away
- "Her fear receded." -- diminished
- "The waves first advance and then recede." -- move away
- "The news story receded into the background as it was replaced by new stories." -- received diminished attention
- "a receding hairline" -- diminished hair (each year the line where hair stops growing is higher on the forehead)
- "She has a receding chin." -- sloping back (as contrasted to sticking out)