attrition.

1. A gradual reduction in the number of people or resources through losses over time.

2. The gradual wearing of material through rubbing or repeated physical contact.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• participant attrition
• staff attrition
• attrition rate

On the page

Participant attrition left the final sample disproportionately wealthy.

The department reduced its workforce through attrition rather than layoffs.

A strategy of attrition imposed costs that neither side could easily sustain.

Usage notes

Primary category: academic. In studies, participant attrition can bias results if departures are selective. It differs from an initial low response rate. Usually uncountable. Usually uncountable in the recorded sense; no ordinary plural.