From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishascendas‧cend /əˈsend/ ●○○ verb 1 [intransitive]UP formal to move up through the air OPP descend The plane ascended rapidly.2 [transitive]CLIMB written to climb something or move to a higher position OPP descend Without a word, he began to ascend the stairs.RegisterAscend is used mostly in literary or technical contexts. In everyday English, people usually say climb or go up:We started to climb the mountain.She slowly went up the stairs.3 [intransitive]UP written to lead up to a higher position OPP descend The road ascends steeply from the harbour.4 [intransitive, transitive] formal to move to a more important or powerful job The number of women decreases as you ascend the professional hierarchy.5 → ascend the throne6 → in ascending order→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
ascend• Ms. Goodman ascended a 10-foot aluminum ladder to the roof.• Paul was first to ascend, and the boards shook under him as he gave Junior a hand up.• We also identified the product of the team of teams as we ascended from the micro to the macro level.• He leaned out of an upstairs window and felt a current of warm air ascending from the street.• A huge flock of red-wing blackbirds ascended from their nests along the side of the road.• She looked up as Eva ascended into the rafters.• It took about twenty minutes to ascend the 212 steps, but it was worth the effort.• He was turning to ascend the ladder to the engine room when the ship's fire alarm sounded.• Bianca walked regally across the hall and ascended the marble staircase.• Several ski lifts ascended the mountain.• Primarily, however, her antics seem playful, befitting a king who ascended the throne at age 10.• From this pseudo-grandeur, a curving stairway ascends to eight capacious galleries.• Continue ascending two more forms and then play the whole thing descending.Origin ascend (1300-1400) Latin ascendere, from ad- “to” + scandere “to climb” 