peter out

verb

petered out; petering out; peters out

informal

: to gradually become smaller, weaker, or less before stopping or ending

Their romantic relationship petered out after the summer.

Interest in the sport is beginning to peter out.

Examples of peter out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The agent’s story peters out at the end; Simon photographs a quilt made out of T-shirts from his many law-enforcement jobs which his girlfriend commissioned for him from Etsy. — Emily Witt, New Yorker, 26 Sep. 2026

It’s expected to peter out over the next few days over the open Atlantic. — Dylan Moriarty, Washington Post, 21 Sep. 2026

At the same time, Washington’s strikes on Iran appeared to peter out overnight into Friday – potentially marking a step change in the latest stretch of fighting. — Jeremy Diamond, CNN Money, 31 July 2026

Putin thinks that time is on his side, that Western support will peter out and that Ukraine’s resistance will eventually collapse under pressure from strategic bombing, analysts say. — Hanna Arhirova, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2026

Rhymes for peter out

• roundabout
• runabout
• sauerkraut
• thereabout
• turnabout
• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout