Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - ebb

~1 n 1 also ebb tide the flow of the sea away from the shore, when the tide1 (1) goes out  (- opposite flood tide) 2 be at a low ebb to be in a bad state or condition  (By March 1933, the economy was at its lowest ebb.) 3 ebb and flow a situation or state in which something increases and decreases in a kind of pattern  (I relaxed into the ebb and flow of the music.) ~2 v 1 if the tide ebbs, it flows away from the shore 2 also ebb away to gradually decrease  (Linda's enthusiasm began to ebb away.)