1.
    an action of moving downward, dropping, or falling.
    "the plane had gone into a steep descent"
    synonyms:    dive, drop; More
    fall, pitch, nosedive
    "the plane began its descent"
    downward climb
    "their descent of the mountain"
        a downward slope, esp. a path or track.
        "a steep, badly eroded descent"
        synonyms:    incline, dip, drop, gradient, declivity; More
        hill
        "a steep descent"
        a moral, social, or psychological decline into a specified undesirable state.
        "the ancient empire's slow descent into barbarism"
        synonyms:    decline, slide, fall, degeneration, deterioration, regression More
        "his descent into alcoholism"
    2.
    the origin or background of a person in terms of family or nationality.
    "American families of Hungarian descent"
    synonyms:    ancestry, parentage, ancestors, family, antecedents; More
    extraction, origin, derivation, birth;
    lineage, line, genealogy, heredity, stock, pedigree, blood, bloodline;
    roots, origins
    "she is of Italian descent"
        the transmission of qualities, property, or privileges by inheritance.
        synonyms:    inheritance, succession More
        "the descent of property"
    3.
    a sudden, violent attack.
    "a descent on the enemy airstrip"
    synonyms:    attack, assault, raid, onslaught, charge, thrust, push, drive, incursion, foray More
    "the sudden descent of the cavalry"