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/ɛb/ Listen

noun

Ebb n. (Zoöl.) The European bunting.

Ebb n.

The reflux or flowing back of the tide; the return of the tidal wave toward the sea; opposed to flood; as, the boats will go out on the ebb. "Thou shoreless flood which in thy ebb and flow Claspest the limits of morality!"

The state or time of passing away; a falling from a better to a worse state; low state or condition; decline; decay. "Our ebb of life." "Painting was then at its lowest ebb."

Ebb and flow, the alternate ebb and flood of the tide; often used figuratively. "This alternation between unhealthy activity and depression, this ebb and flow of the industrial."

verb

Ebb v. t. To cause to flow back. (Obs.)

Ebb v. i. (past & past part. ebbed; pres. part. ebbing)

To flow back; to return, as the water of a tide toward the ocean; opposed to flow. "That Power who bids the ocean ebb and flow."

To return or fall back from a better to a worse state; to decline; to decay; to recede. "The hours of life ebb fast."

Synonyms: To recede; retire; withdraw; decay; decrease; wane; sink; lower.

adjective

Ebb adj. Receding; going out; falling; shallow; low. "The water there is otherwise very low and ebb."

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Etymology of 'Ebb'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Ebb" Quotes from Famous Books

... for the boy. The latter was true to his word, and his slight figure soon appeared rounding the corner. Without losing a moment we all three entered the subterranean passage, but the tide was still high, and we had to wait for the ebb. This came at length, and, clambering over the rocks, we entered the surf and waded as before. After an hour's toil we reached Punta Hornos, and a little beyond this point I was enabled to hail one of our own pickets, and to pass the lines ...

— The Rifle Rangers • Captain Mayne Reid

... legislative proposals on the subject were made. We must have a currency, not rigid as now, but readily, elastically responsive to sound credit, the expanding and contracting credits of everyday transactions, the normal ebb and flow of personal and corporate dealings. Our banking laws must mobilize reserves; must not permit the concentration anywhere in a few hands of the monetary resources of the country or their use for speculative purposes in such volume as to hinder or impede or stand in the way ...

— President Wilson's Addresses • Woodrow Wilson

... were inadequate to the wants of the nation. The succession of several weak kings had brought affairs into this state, when Philippe the Sixth of Valois crowned the misfortunes of the country by entering into a war with England, at a time when the funds of his kingdom were at the lowest ebb; constantly engaged in hostilities, he had not leisure or the means of attending to the welfare of the Parisians, and the disasters he encountered caused his reign to be remembered as a series of misfortunes. Several colleges, however, were founded ...

— How to Enjoy Paris in 1842 • F. Herve

... essentially Spanish. A fourth class still represented Scriptural and sacred scenes. Calderon wrote at the height of the Spanish drama during the reign of Philip II; and after his time the drama in Spain declined until, in the eighteen century, it was at its lowest ebb. At this time plays were still held in open courtyards, and in the daytime, as in the earlier ages. Efforts were made to subject it to French and Italian rule, but this had only a limited success; stiff, cold translation from the French could not please a people who always found in the ...

— The Interdependence of Literature • Georgina Pell Curtis

... in the greatest strength of the current. Jim bowed his head, and our last talk seemed to flicker out for good. He was seeing me off as far as the mouth of the river. The schooner had left the day before, working down and drifting on the ebb, while I had prolonged my stay overnight. And now he ...

— Lord Jim • Joseph Conrad

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