Downcycle

noun, verb

noun, verb ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A period of a cycle where something is decreasing or deteriorating.

    "Because commodity industries, including energy, are driven by costs, a pricing down-cycle brings major cost cutting efforts, often involving restructurings and consolidations to increase economies of scale."

Verb
  1. 1
    To convert (waste materials, etc.) into new materials or products of lower quality and reduced functionality. transitive

    "Nike set up a "Reuse-a-Shoe" program to "downcycle" old sneakers. The outsole rubber and midsole foam from used shoes are converted into surface material for running tracks and other athletic facilities and playgrounds. The fabric from the shoe uppers becomes padding under carpets."

Example

More examples

"Nike set up a "Reuse-a-Shoe" program to "downcycle" old sneakers. The outsole rubber and midsole foam from used shoes are converted into surface material for running tracks and other athletic facilities and playgrounds. The fabric from the shoe uppers becomes padding under carpets."

Etymology

Etymology 1

Blend of down + recycle.

Etymology 2

From down + cycle.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.