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perishes

verb

present tense third-person singular of perish
1
as in dies
to stop living 12 people perished in the plane crash

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in disintegrates
chiefly British to go through decomposition after being left out in the summer heat, the milk perished and had to be thrown out

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 perishes In The Children, sister and brother Guinevere and Ennis grow up under the shadow of their mother, Edith Sharpe, whose Ninth City children’s book series transfixes the world until Edith perishes in a mysterious fire in Vermont. — Hamilton Cain, Time, 7 July 2026 Every soldier Harry would have saved on a transport during the war perishes too. — Margaret Heidenry, Vanity Fair, 24 Dec. 2025 Factory ships deplete fisheries in a matter of years and an inordinate amount of sea life also perishes in their nets. — Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for perishes
  1. dies
  2. disintegrates
  3. falls
  4. decomposes
  5. succumbs
  6. decays
  7. rots
Verb
  • Making people’s lives better does not mean having a symbolic vote on something that goes to the Senate and dies — that’s what the Republicans have done for two years.
    — Mathew Miranda, Sacbee.com, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Using the X-ray spacecraft XRISM (X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission), astronomers have observed stellar winds from a hypergiant star feeding an extreme stellar remnant known as a neutron star, left over after a massive star dies.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of dies
Verb
  • Even those who can afford to stay suffer losses in home equity and lifestyle as the community around them disintegrates or disappears.
    — The Conversation, Fortune, 12 June 2026
  • None are quite about the conflicting frames of reference and value that arise when an ancient cultural formation disintegrates and a successor has yet to take its place.
    — Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 1 June 2026
Definition of disintegrates
Verb
  • Because every moment is narrated in Ugandan Sign Language and International Sign, Deaf travelers are more deeply immersed in the experience, and a welcome hush falls over the environment—which is, surprise, appreciated by the wildlife too.
    — CNT Editors, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Sep. 2026
  • However, the salt can solidify if its temperature falls too close to its freezing point.
    — Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of falls
Verb
  • Named for the Frenchman Joseph Fourier, the Fourier transform decomposes any function into a set of simple waves, each with a different frequency, or tone.
    — Shalma Wegsman, Quanta Magazine, 12 Aug. 2026
  • The research team enabled a room-temperature, four-electron chemical reaction path that forms and decomposes lithium oxide, which expands available energy storage.
    — Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 3 June 2026
Definition of decomposes
Verb
  • Wolf succumbs to Shura, a demonic force in the game’s mythology that possesses those who give in to bloodlust.
    — Aman Kumar, Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Vhagar dies in the crash and Caraxes succumbs to his injuries a few days after crawling out and into the bowls of Harrenhal.
    — James Grebey, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of succumbs
Verb
  • Rituals are performed, oaths proposed and broken, and tensions escalate as the unburied body decays.
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Control concentrated in one person dies with that person, decays with that person's judgment, and converts to cash the day that person takes a hard enough offer.
    — Kyle Westaway, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of decays
Verb
  • In my experience, environment, culture, clarity, psychological safety and pace determine whether talent produces or rots.
    — Nilton Bernini, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2026
  • And be prepared to top off the soil in the future as the remaining root system rots away, causing the soil to sag.
    — Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of rots

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Cite this Entry

“Perishes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perishes. Accessed 25 Sep. 2026.

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