Decupling

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The process of increasing by a factor of ten; the act of multiplying something tenfold; an instance where a quantity grows to ten times its original size
2. The action of making ten times greater in amount or degree; the phenomenon of scaling up by ten units; a situation where an entity is amplified ten times over
3. The state or result of expanding ten times in magnitude; the procedure of elevating a value to ten times its initial measure; a condition characterized by a tenfold increase in scale

Etymology: "Decupling" is the present participle of "decuple", a verb meaning to multiply by ten. The root word is itself a compound of two Latin elements: "decem", meaning ten, and "plicō", meaning to fold. Put together, the idea is literally a tenfold folding, so a quantity that is decupled has been folded over ten times, as if doubling a sheet of paper were repeated with a tenfold multiplier. The English form came into use through Middle English "decuple", borrowed from Middle French "décuple", which in turn descends from Late Latin "decuplus", meaning "tenfold". The Latin adjective was a formation of "decem" and the suffix-like element found in words such as "duplus" and "triplus", which is why the family of words built on "plus" tends to express multiplication. The verb "decuple" follows the same pattern, so "decupling" simply names the act or state of performing that tenfold multiplication.

Synonyms: increasing tenfold, multiplying, amplifying, enhancing, boosting

Antonyms: reducing, decreasing, diminishing, halving, lowering