demise
Americannoun
-
demises
plural
-
death or decease.
-
termination of existence or operation.
the demise of the empire.
-
Law.
-
a death or decease occasioning the transfer of an estate.
-
a conveyance or transfer of an estate.
-
-
Government. transfer of sovereignty, as by the death or deposition of the sovereign.
verb (used with object)
-
demises,
present (3rd person singular)
-
demised,
past participle, past
-
demising
present participle
-
Law. to transfer (an estate or the like) for a limited time; lease.
-
Government. to transfer (sovereignty), as by the death or abdication of the sovereign.
verb (used without object)
-
demises,
present (3rd person singular)
-
demised,
past participle, past
-
demising
present participle
noun
-
failure or termination
the demise of one's hopes
-
a euphemistic or formal word for death
-
property law
-
a transfer of an estate by lease
-
the passing or transfer of an estate on the death of the owner
-
-
the immediate transfer of sovereignty to a successor upon the death, abdication, etc, of a ruler (esp in the phrase demise of the crown )
verb
-
to transfer or be transferred by inheritance, will, or succession
-
(tr) property law to transfer (an estate, etc) for a limited period; lease
-
(tr) to transfer (sovereignty, a title, etc) by or as if by the death, deposition, etc, of a ruler
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
demisesimple
-
demisessimple
-
have demisedperfect
-
has demisedperfect
-
am demisingprogressive
-
are demisingprogressive
-
is demisingprogressive
-
have been demisingperfect progressive
-
has been demisingperfect progressive
Past
-
demisedsimple
-
had demisedperfect
-
was demisingprogressive
-
were demisingprogressive
-
had been demisingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of demise
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English demise, dimis(s)e, from Old French demis, past participle of desmetre, from Latin dīmittere “to send away, dismiss”; see dismiss
Explanation
Resort to the noun demise when you describe the end, termination, or death of something or someone. Demise is mostly used in medical or legal language, or when someone wants to sound either formal or euphemistic. The word entered English from French demettre which means "to dismiss," from the Latin word mittere, meaning "let go, send." And you might think, after reading this quote from E. Phillips Oppenheim, that demise sounds somewhat old-fashioned: "That my demise would have been a relief to you I can, of course, easily believe, but the means — they surely were not worthy of your ingenuity."
Vocabulary lists containing demise
Send a Message: Mit and Miss
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Tuesdays with Morrie
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 20–25
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
After everyone had discussed Ross's demise, she piped up in her famous Texan drawl: "Is Ross gone?"
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
Inevitably, such an anniversary will have some worrying that the bull is showing signs of age, with chances of its demise increasing as it trundles on.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026
But Ms. Gammon never strays far from the mystery of Jutta and Lukas’s demise.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
Much remains unknown about what led to Jackie’s demise.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026
Deprived of love since the tragic demise of his parents, fourteen-year-old Harry Potter thought he had found solace in his steady girlfriend at Hogwarts, Muggle-born Hermione Granger.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
Along with the celebrities, the Loserbards also recounted the unusual demises of some otherwise unknown folks.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 27, 2022
If anything, the sentimentality of such demises lie not in the character’s fate but in an actor’s departure.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 11, 2021
Outside the nine-episode series, the carving game is a legitimate children’s game that’s played in South Korea – sans gory demises.
From Fox News ● Oct. 10, 2021
Several grim demises later, it spoils nothing to say that she's a changed person.
From Salon ● Mar. 2, 2019
Accordingly we hear most about them in connection with demises of domestic sovereignty.
From Ancient Law Its Connection to the History of Early Society by Sir Henry Sumner Maine
Having spent the past 20 years in Mississippi, the couple will be remembered by friends and family for amassing a collection of nearly 1,000 announcements of the demised.
From Washington Times ● Apr. 8, 2018
Photograph: Rebecca Jewell/Ghosts of Gone Birds They are all, alas, bleeding demised, passed on, no more, ceased to be, bereft of life and resting in peace.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 24, 2011
Perhaps never was he so proud of them as last September, when "Rudy," their favorite fox terrier, unhappily demised.
From Time Magazine Archive
John B. Waldo, recently demised, was also a pupil of mine for about two years.
From Memoirs of Orange Jacobs by Orange Jacobs
Nowadays the difference between the Tories who contended that the crown had been demised, and the Whigs who insisted that the throne was vacant, hardly arrests the student for an instant.
From William the Third by H. D. (Henry Duff) Traill
The bank infuriated unions last month when it described 3,166 job losses as "demising" roles.
From The Guardian ● May 28, 2013
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
