wither away

Meanings

1. 1verbintransitive

   to gradually become weaker, smaller, or less important, and often disappear

   Grammar: No object; often used with 'away' after the verb: wither away.

   Patterns

   • wither away
   • wither away to something

   The business slowly withered away after the owner retired.

   Without support, the project withered away.

   His hopes withered away as the months passed.

2. 2verbintransitive

   to become dry and start to die, especially of a plant

   Grammar: No object; used about plants or parts of plants.

   Patterns

   • wither away
   • wither away in something

   The flowers withered away in the hot sun.

   The leaves withered away and fell to the ground.

Word forms

Common combinations

slowly wither away

The old traditions slowly withered away.

wither away to nothing

The savings withered away to nothing.

wither away in the sun

The plants withered away in the sun.

let something wither away

They let the garden wither away.

Synonyms and how they differ

decline

Decline means to become less or worse, often used for numbers or quality; wither away suggests a gradual, sad fading.

fade

Fade means to lose color or strength gradually; wither away is stronger and often suggests dying or ending.

shrivel

Shrivel means to become smaller and wrinkled, especially from heat or dryness; wither away focuses on the process of dying or disappearing.

Opposites

Word family

wither verb

to become dry and start to die

withering adjective

intended to make someone feel ashamed; also (of a plant) drying up

Commonly confused: wither away or wither?

Practice

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Write a sentence using “wither away”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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