Does using "diminish" instead of "reduce" place an emphasis on the process of reduction?

I have an essay assignment and the prompt looks like this:

Without application in reality, the value of scientific findings is greatly diminished.

My teacher insists that the use of "diminished" instead of "reduced" implies that the decrease in "the value of scientific findings" is a gradual process rather than just one moment.

I am not perfectly sure about this. Although "to diminish" can mean to disappear gradually, but I think the two words mean the same thing. Well, do they?

Solution 1:

Although "diminished" can mean what your teacher says, I wouldn't agree that it does in this case. The sense is neutral and is just indicating a simple reduction in value. Webster's also doesn't ascribe any clear sense of "gradual" in its primary definition:

to become or to cause (something) to become less in size, importance, etc.

In this particular case, in other words, I'd say that either "reduced" or "diminished" could be used without any substantive change in meaning.