Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Ascendant \As*cend"ant\, Ascendent \As*cend"ent\, a.
   1. Rising toward the zenith; above the horizon.

            The constellation . . . about that time ascendant.
                                                  --Browne.

   2. Rising; ascending. --Ruskin.

   3. Superior; surpassing; ruling.

            An ascendant spirit over him.         --South.

            The ascendant community obtained a surplus of
            wealth.                               --J. S. Mill.

            Without some power of persuading or confuting, of
            defending himself against accusations, . . . no man
            could possibly hold an ascendent position. --Grote.

Source : WordNet®

ascendent
     adj 1: tending or directed upward; "rooted and ascendant strength
            like that of foliage"- John Ruskin [syn: {ascendant},
            {ascensive}]
     2: most powerful or important or influential; "the economically
        ascendant class"; "D-day is considered the dominating
        event of the war in Europe" [syn: {ascendant}, {dominating}]
     n 1: position or state of being dominant or in control; "that
          idea was in the ascendant" [syn: {ascendant}]
     2: someone from whom you are descended (but usually more remote
        than a grandparent) [syn: {ancestor}, {ascendant}, {antecedent},
         {root}] [ant: {descendant}]