: 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
Ted Williams, Denver Post, 24 Feb. 2026
Amid a years-long decline in the bee population that has startled scientists, experts are now warning that a growing industry is hurting native habitats and potentially leading to further die-offs.
—Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 20 Feb. 2026
Chris Willman, Variety, 23 Feb. 2026
Castration is out of the question because the pen would still require costly upgrades while time passes as the deer die off.
—Leah Olajide, Freep.com, 13 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for die-off
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Noun
When record-breaking snowfall occurred during the winter of 2022-2023, there were massive mule deer die-offs.
—Ted Williams, Denver Post, 24 Feb. 2026
Amid a years-long decline in the bee population that has startled scientists, experts are now warning that a growing industry is hurting native habitats and potentially leading to further die-offs.
—Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 20 Feb. 2026
Verb
There has been a fear among some Elvis fans that his core audience will die off, and even the next generations, over time, so will people still be going to Graceland in 50 or 75 years?
—Chris Willman, Variety, 23 Feb. 2026
Castration is out of the question because the pen would still require costly upgrades while time passes as the deer die off.
—Leah Olajide, Freep.com, 13 Feb. 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 1 Mar. 2026.
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