wither

verb with·er \ ˈwi-t͟hər \

Updated on: 15 Apr 2018

Definition of wither

withered; withering play \ˈwit͟h-riŋ, ˈwi-t͟hə-\

intransitive verb

1 : to become dry and sapless; especially : to shrivel from or as if from loss of bodily moisture

2 : to lose vitality, force, or freshness

public support for the bill is withering

transitive verb

1 : to cause to wither

2 : to make speechless or incapable of action : stun

withered him with a look
—Dorothy Sayers

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Examples of wither in a Sentence

The plants withered and died.
shortly after the moon landing, interest in the space program withered

Recent Examples of wither from the Web

Maintenance and construction work on campuses fall billions of dollars behind schedule, and capital funding has withered.

— dawn rhodes, chicagotribune.com, "Growing brain drain: University of Alabama's gain in drawing Illinois students is a loss for Illinois schools," 6 Apr. 2018
Eventually, Valve shifted its focus to game streaming with the launch of Steam Link, and Steam Machines have withered due to a lack of support across the board.

— nick statt, The Verge, "Valve quietly hides Steam Machine section from its game store after years of neglect," 2 Apr. 2018
And King and other volunteers preserving these loving tributes needed to work quickly, because the flowers have withered.

— phillip valys, Sun-Sentinel.com, "50 volunteers dismantle Stoneman Douglas memorial for preservation," 28 Mar. 2018
Outside, the trees had withered and a 30-foot hole in the backyard had been filled with garbage.

— alden woods, azcentral, "Outsiders, FLDS battle for control of towns Warren Jeffs left behind," 27 Mar. 2018
The State Department has withered under Tillerson, who proposed slashing its budget and left key posts unfilled, decimating morale across the Foreign Service.

— elizabeth dias, Time, "Mike Pompeo Has What Rex Tillerson Didn't: 'Killer Graphics' and Trump's Trust," 13 Mar. 2018
And the corresponding ideal of the public — gathering to share in a common treasury of imagination — has withered as tastes have fragmented.

— a. o. scott, New York Times, "The Return of the Artistic Company," 18 Feb. 2018
The formerly imposing figure has withered to 140 pounds.

— marcos bretón, sacbee, "Spotlight dims for one of the city’s most colorful – and confrontational – characters," 11 Feb. 2018
As a result, the fan base has withered away while constantly looking for reasons for hope.

— jamie samuelsen, Detroit Free Press, "Jamie Samuelsen: Pistons not progressing enough in season's first half," 20 Jan. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of wither

Middle English widren; probably akin to Middle English weder weather

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First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

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wither Synonyms

wither

noun

Definition of wither

chiefly British

: withers

First Known Use of wither

1607

in the meaning defined above

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Wither

biographical name With·er \ ˈwi-t͟hər \

Definition of Wither

George 1588–1667 English poet and pamphleteer

WITHER Defined for English Language Learners

wither

verb

Definition of wither for English Language Learners

of a plant : to become dry and weak

WITHER Defined for Kids

wither

verb with·er \ ˈwi-t͟hər \

Definition of wither for Students

withered; withering

: to shrivel or cause to shrivel from or as if from loss of moisture : wilt

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wither

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Wither

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