1
as in to dry
to lose liveliness, force, or freshness
shortly after the moon landing, interest in the space program withered the old man seemed to wither suddenly upon turning 80
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to fade
to lose bodily strength or vigor
if he's left on his own, he'll just wither and die
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of wither
The Navy effectively stopped building ships at the close of the cold war and the sophisticated industrial base supporting ship construction – both the skilled workforce and the supply chain – withered for more than a generation.
—
Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 23 Mar. 2026
The Wolverines withered in being outscored 39-17 over the final 12 minutes.
—ABC News, 23 Mar. 2026
Instead, left under the most punishing economic sanctions Cubans have known in their lives, the island may slowly wither and die.
—Patrick Oppmann, CNN Money, 22 Mar. 2026
Despite withering airstrikes, officials see a weakened but more hard-line government in Tehran, backed by the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps security forces.
—Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post, 16 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for wither
Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 23 Mar. 2026
The Wolverines withered in being outscored 39-17 over the final 12 minutes.
—ABC News, 23 Mar. 2026
Instead, left under the most punishing economic sanctions Cubans have known in their lives, the island may slowly wither and die.
—Patrick Oppmann, CNN Money, 22 Mar. 2026
Despite withering airstrikes, officials see a weakened but more hard-line government in Tehran, backed by the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps security forces.
—Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post, 16 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for wither
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wither
Verb
-
The results could one day help mitigate the problem of toxic dust spewing from the drying lake bed onto Salt Lake City—the Great Salt Lake’s bed is laced with arsenic, a toxic substance that, when people are exposed to it as dust, may cause cancers, respiratory problems and heart disease.—
Jackie Flynn Mogensen,
Scientific American,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Alcohol can be stinging and drying to the skin.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Scout seems insightful, based on its response to a question posed by The Associated Press about why one of Silicon Valley's brightest stars faded away a decade ago.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Mar. 2026
-
This year's Oscars may be in the rearview mirror, but for one Detroit designer, the spotlight hasn't faded.—
Lauren Winfrey,
CBS News,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
And kudos to the Horns, who didn't wilt despite taking some huge body shots from a quality opponent.—
Cedric Golden,
Austin American Statesman,
18 Mar. 2026
-
The Illini have lost four overtime games and seem to wilt in the clutch.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
But the president contends there is no excuse for the lack of participation now that Iran's navy has been sunk and its air defenses severely weakened.—
Michael Loria,
USA Today,
31 Mar. 2026
-
In the state’s view, that weakens or muddies the legal boundary between the two types of gambling venues.—
Amanda Greenwood,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
James Madison used a sagging zone defense in the paint or a double-team on Strack in an attempt to slow down the Wildcats, but that left Strack’s teammates open for easy shots.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
21 Mar. 2026
-
Release, for contouring and pressure relief; and Adaptive, to keep the bed from sagging.—
Nashia Baker,
Architectural Digest,
19 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Could a straighter road make cars go faster?—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
30 Mar. 2026
-
To meet his growing costs, Meraj had increased the price of a cup of tea from ten rupees to fifteen, a fifty-per-cent rise (in New York terms, like a cup of drip coffee going from just shy of four dollars to nearly six overnight).—
Nathan Heller,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The lawsuit alleged that Bank of America failed to file suspicious activity reports, known as SARs, until after Epstein's death in 2019.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
-
During the next two and a half years, Beckham and various investors tried, and failed, to land a stadium deal.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wither.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wither. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
