wanes

Wanes is the third-person singular present tense form of the verb to wane. It denotes a decrease or diminution in size, extent, power, or intensity. Wanes can describe tangible things, such as light or health, and abstract phenomena, such as interest, influence, or confidence. The term is used in both everyday speech and formal writing to indicate a slipping away or lessening of a quality or quantity.

In astronomy, the waning of the Moon refers to the phase after a full moon during which the visible illuminated portion decreases toward new moon. This process continues until the Moon reaches its new phase and is no longer visible from Earth, after which the cycle begins again with waxing.

Etymology traces the word to Old English wanian, meaning to fade or wither. The modern sense of gradually diminishing developed in Middle English and spread to various uses beyond astronomy. Wanes is typically contrasted with wax, as in the common expression wax and wane, describing cycles of growth and decline.

As a grammatical form, wanes is used with singular subjects (for example, the tide wanes; public interest wanes). The related forms include waned (past tense) and waning (present participle or gerund).

See also: wax and wane, waning, waning gibbous, waning crescent. The concept is widely applicable across contexts, from natural phenomena to social trends, where a quantity or influence moves from stronger to weaker over time.