Wiktionary:Word of the day/2024/January 13

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ascendant adj

Moving upward; ascending, rising. (figurative) Controlling, dominant, surpassing. (astrology) In an eastern direction rising just above the horizon. (astronomy) Rising towards the zenith. (botany, physiology) Of a part of an organism: synonym of ascending (“leading or sloping upwards”) (genealogy, archaic or obsolete) Synonym of ascending (“of or pertaining to one's ancestors”) ascendant n (astrology, also figurative) The degree of the zodiac or point of the ecliptic which rises in an eastern direction above the horizon at a particular moment (especially the moment of a person's birth), which is supposed to have a commanding influence on a person's fortune and life; a horoscope. (by extension) Chiefly in in the ascendant: an act of ascending or rising. (figurative) Synonym of ascendancy (“commanding influence; dominant control; superiority, supremacy”) (genealogy) An ancestor. (obsolete) A person who ascends or goes up; specifically (usually followed by to), a person who ascends to a throne or assumes some other position of power. Something which is higher than the things around it; a peak, a summit; specifically (typography), synonym of ascender (“the portion of a lowercase letter that extends above the midline”) Something which leads or slopes upwards, such as a flight of stairs or an upward incline. (rare) A person who supports a policy of ecclesiastical or national supremacy.

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