different between descendant vs litter

English

Etymology

From Middle English dessendaunte, borrowed from Middle French, from Latin d?scend?ns, present participle of descendere, from d? + scandere (“to climb, ascend”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d??s?nd?nt/
• Hyphenation: des?cen?dant

Adjective

descendant (not comparable)

1. descending from a biological ancestor.
2. proceeding from a figurative ancestor or source.

Usage notes

The adjective may be spelled either with ant or ent as the final syllable (see descendent). The noun may be spelled only with ant.

Alternative forms

• descendent

Antonyms

• ascendant, ascendent, ascending

Related terms

• descendancy

Noun

descendant (plural descendants)

1. One who is the progeny of a specified person, at any distance of time or through any number of generations.

   The patriarch survived many descendants: five children, a dozen grandchildren, even a great grandchild.

2. (figuratively) A thing that derives directly from a given precursor or source.

   This famous medieval manuscript has many descendants.

3. (biology) A later evolutionary type.

   Dogs evolved as descendants of early wolves.

4. (linguistics) A language that is descended from another.

   English and Scots are the descendants of Old English.

5. (linguistics) A word or form in one language that is descended from a counterpart in an ancestor language.
   • 1993, Jens Elmegård Rasmussen, “The Slavic i-verbs with an excursus on the Indo-European ?-verbs”, in Bela Brogyanyi and Reiner Lipp (editors), Comparative-Historical Linguistics, John Benjamins Publishing, ?ISBN, page 479:

   Synonyms: reflex, derivative

   Antonym: etymon

   Coordinate term: cognate

Usage notes

The adjective may be spelled either with ant or ent as the final syllable (see descendent). The noun may be spelled only with ant.

Synonyms

• (offspring): afterbear, offspring, scion, and see Thesaurus:child & relative

Antonyms

• ascendant
• ancestor
• forebear

Derived terms

• direct descendant
• indirect descendant

Translations

See also

• offspring
• offshoot
• progeny

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin d?scend?ns, d?scend?ntem, the present participle of descendere, itself from d? + scandere (“climb, ascend”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /de.s??.d??/

Verb

descendant

1. present participle of descendre
2. (preceded by en) gerund of descendre

Noun

descendant m (plural descendants, feminine descendante)

1. A descendant; one who is the progeny of someone at any distance of time; e.g. a child; a grandchild, etc.

Antonyms

• ancêtre m
• ascendant m

Adjective

descendant (feminine singular descendante, masculine plural descendants, feminine plural descendantes)

1. (which is) descending.

Antonyms

• ascendant
• montant

Derived terms

• compatibilité descendante

Related terms

• descendance
• descendre

Further reading

• “descendant” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Latin

Verb

d?scendant

1. third-person plural present active subjunctive of d?scend?

English

Etymology

From French litière, from lit (“bed”), from Latin lectus; confer Ancient Greek ??????? (léktron). Had the sense ‘bed’ in very early English, but then came to mean ‘portable couch’, ‘bedding’, ‘strewn rushes (for animals)’, etc.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?l?t?(?)/
• (US) IPA^(key): /?l?t?/, [?l???]
• Rhymes: -?t?(r)
• Homophone: lidder (US)

Noun

litter (countable and uncountable, plural litters)

1. (countable) A platform mounted on two shafts, or a more elaborate construction, designed to be carried by two (or more) people to transport one (in luxury models sometimes more) third person(s) or (occasionally in the elaborate version) a cargo, such as a religious idol.
2. (collective, countable) The offspring of a mammal born in one birth.
3. (uncountable) Material used as bedding for animals.

4. (uncountable) Collectively, items discarded on the ground.
   • 1730, Jonathan Swift, s:The Lady's Dressing Room

     Strephon [...] / Stole in, and took a strict survey / Of all the litter as it lay.
5. (uncountable) Absorbent material used in an animal's litter tray

6. (uncountable) Layer of fallen leaves and similar organic matter in a forest floor.
7. A covering of straw for plants.

Synonyms

• (platform designed to carry a person or a load): palanquin, sedan chair, stretcher, cacolet
• (items discarded on the ground): waste, rubbish, garbage (US), trash (US), junk

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

litter (third-person singular simple present litters, present participle littering, simple past and past participle littered)

1. (intransitive) To drop or throw trash without properly disposing of it (as discarding in public areas rather than trash receptacles).

2. (transitive) To scatter carelessly about.
3. (transitive) To strew (a place) with scattered articles.
4. (transitive) To give birth to, used of animals.
5. (intransitive) To produce a litter of young.
6. (transitive) To supply (cattle etc.) with litter; to cover with litter, as the floor of a stall.
   • 1693, John Hacket, Scrinia reserata: a Memorial offered to the great Deservings of John Williams

     Tell them how they litter their jades.

   • For his ease, well litter'd was the floor.

7. (intransitive) To be supplied with litter as bedding; to sleep or make one's bed in litter.
   • 1634, William Habington, Castara

     The inn where he and his horse litter'd.

Derived terms

• litterer

Translations

Anagrams

• retilt, tilter, titler

Norman

Etymology

From Old French luitier, loitier, luiter (compare French lutter), from Vulgar Latin luct?re, from Latin luctor, luct?r? (“struggle, wrestle, fight”).

Verb

litter

1. (Jersey) to wrestle

Derived terms

• litteux (“wrestler”)