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wilt

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\ wəlt, ˈwilt How to pronounce wilt (audio) \

Definition of wilt

 (Entry 1 of 3)

archaic present tense second-person singular of will

wilt

verb
\ ˈwilt How to pronounce wilt (audio) \
wilted; wilting; wilts

Definition of wilt (Entry 2 of 3)

intransitive verb

1a : to lose turgor from lack of water the plants wilted in the heat
b : to become limp
2 : to grow weak or faint : languish

transitive verb

: to cause to wilt

wilt

noun
\ ˈwilt How to pronounce wilt (audio) \

Definition of wilt (Entry 3 of 3)

1 : an act or instance of wilting : the state of being wilted
2a : a disorder (such as a fungus disease) of plants marked by loss of turgidity in soft tissues with subsequent drooping and often shriveling

— called also wilt disease
b : polyhedrosis of caterpillars
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Synonyms for wilt

Synonyms: Verb

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Examples of wilt in a Sentence

Verb The hot weather wilted the plants. The crowd wilted in the heat. He wilted under the pressure.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Verb If recently shrubs and trees planted within the last two or three years wilt in the drought, run the hose at the plants’ base for an hour or more to moisten the root ball every two weeks until the rains start. — Calvin Finch, ExpressNews.com, "Fall blooms to attract butterflies and hummingbirds to your San Antonio garden," 13 Sep. 2019 The Storm wilted down the stretch against Connecticut, blowing a seven-point lead in the final 2 minutes. — Doug Feinberg, courant.com, "WNBA playoff picture clearing up; Aces, Sun Mystics clinch," 20 Aug. 2019 No, his first pass didn’t go for a touchdown and his first drive didn’t end in score, but Auburn’s first freshman quarterback since 1946 didn’t wilt after Auburn got off to a rocky start. — Josh Bean | Jbean@al.com, al, "Quarter-by-quarter look at Auburn’s 27-21 victory over Oregon," 31 Aug. 2019 While the flowers have since wilted, the fundraiser is still open until Sept. 1. — Evan Frank, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "A small portion of the estimated 500,000 sunflowers were damaged by visitors," 27 Aug. 2019 Once some of the speedsters start to wilt in the heat, this one should be lengthening his stride. — courant.com, "Clancy’s Call of the Haskell," 19 July 2019 There were so many that people had to volunteer to help clean up the wilting blooms days later. — Elizabeth Gulino, House Beautiful, "12 Little-Known Facts About The Royal Residence of Kensington Palace," 16 July 2019 In fact, the weather was fitting for the angsty mood that her delicate, wilting vocals and dark, honest lyrics create over the brooding tracks that her brother and co-writer Finneas O’Connell create. — Seth A. Mcconnell, The Know, "PHOTOS: Billie Eilish performs as rain pours at Red Rocks," 6 June 2019 Better than roses that will wilt in a week, these will burn for 50 hours each and fill your home with the fragrance of both spicy wild roses and the softer garden variety. — Dawn Davis, Harper's BAZAAR, "Beauty Must-Have: An Unbelievably Glamorous Valentine's Day Gift," 2 Feb. 2011 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Clean garden practices, crop rotation, and planting resistant hybrids are the best defenses against most diseases, including Stewart’s wilt, a bacterial disease that causes wilting and pale streaks on leaves. — The Editors Of Organic Life, Good Housekeeping, "How To Grow Corn," 5 Apr. 2016 Having watched his side wilt after the break, with individual errors from centre back pairing Sokratis Papastathopoulos and David Luiz gifting Watford two goals, Emery could not hide his frustration. — SI.com, "Unai Emery Reveals Bizarre Reason for Dani Ceballos' Substitution During Latest Arsenal Collapse," 16 Sep. 2019 After a strong first half, Portland State wilts at Boise State. — oregonlive, "It might be raining today, but everything looks brighter for the Oregon State Beavers: Issues & Answers," 15 Sep. 2019 Toss well to coat, and cook until the mustard green wilt, 30 seconds. — Joe Yonan, The Denver Post, "Fried rice was made for those containers of leftover takeout in your fridge," 21 Aug. 2019 Often, migrants’ remains are not found on local ranches until the canopy of brush wilts in the fall. — Los Angeles Times, "Migrant traffic on the busiest stretch of border has decreased, but is the shift significant?," 27 July 2019 Even the faith’s rump formulation, postmodernism, wilts. — Peter Schjeldahl, The New Yorker, "Harald Szeemann’s Revolutionary Curating," 15 July 2019 All five of the new varieties will be less susceptible to a range of diseases, including Fusarium wilt, Verticillium wilt and Macrophomina. — Diane J Nelson, The Mercury News, "UC Davis releases 5 new ‘warrior’ strawberries to fight disease, increase yields," 11 July 2019 Some types are hosts for bacterial wilt disease, which is spread by cucumber beetles. — The Editors, Good Housekeeping, "Everything You Need to Know About Growing Crisp Cucumbers," 12 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'wilt.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of wilt

Verb

circa 1691, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun

1855, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for wilt

Verb

alteration of earlier welk, from Middle English welken, probably from Middle Dutch; akin to Old High German erwelkēn to wilt

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More Definitions for wilt

wilt

How to pronounce wilt (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of wilt

 (Entry 1 of 2)

old-fashioned —used with "thou"

wilt

verb
How to pronounce wilt (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of wilt (Entry 2 of 2)

of a plant : to bend over because of not having enough water
: to become weak and tired especially because of hot weather
: to lose energy, confidence, effectiveness, etc.

See the full definition for wilt in the English Language Learners Dictionary

wilt

verb
\ ˈwilt How to pronounce wilt (audio) \
wilted; wilting

Kids Definition of wilt

 (Entry 1 of 2)

1 : to lose freshness and become limp The roses are wilting.
2 : to lose strength … Mr. Kamata's sturdy … smile was beginning to wilt.— Zilpha Keatley Snyder, The Egypt Game

wilt

noun

Kids Definition of wilt (Entry 2 of 2)

: a plant disease (as of tomatoes) in which wilting and browning of leaves leads to death of the plant

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More from Merriam-Webster on wilt

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for wilt

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with wilt

Spanish Central: Translation of wilt

Nglish: Translation of wilt for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about wilt

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