: a sudden sharp decline of a population of animals or plants that is not caused directly by human activity
died off; dying off; dies off
: to die sequentially either singly or in numbers so that the total number is greatly diminished
Examples of die-off in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Los Angeles Times,
15 June 2026
Seals, sea lions, baleen whales and seabirds all experienced die-offs, likely because of a lack of food and an increase in toxins from algal blooms, Leising said.
—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
11 June 2026
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
26 June 2026
As a result, vegetation has died off, meaning a lack of oxygen.
—
Kambole Campbell,
Variety,
23 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for die-off
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
There were also die-offs of seals, sea lions and marine birds, Leising said, probably from a combination of a lack of food and harmful algal blooms, and less food out there for baleen whales.
—
Los Angeles Times,
15 June 2026
Seals, sea lions, baleen whales and seabirds all experienced die-offs, likely because of a lack of food and an increase in toxins from algal blooms, Leising said.
—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
11 June 2026
Verb
When this happens, the oven continues to generate microwaves that rapidly change frequency as the power dies off over a fraction of a second, mimicking dispersion.
—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
26 June 2026
As a result, vegetation has died off, meaning a lack of oxygen.
—
Kambole Campbell,
Variety,
23 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for die-off
Cite this Entry
“Die-off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/die-off. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
