verb
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of dying
Explanation
Something that's dying is about to die or is getting ready to stop existing. A shriveled up plant that hasn't been watered in days is probably dying. Dying is a process that will happen to us all: living things eventually die. But non-living things can be dying, too: a battery that doesn't have much juice left is dying, and so is a TV show that's bombing in the ratings. A craft that's losing popularity can be called a dying art. States of extreme stress or anticipation can also be described as a form of dying, as in "I'm dying to know how this book ends!"
Vocabulary lists containing dying
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.
Earlier superluminous supernovae had occasionally shown one or two bumps, often explained as shock waves colliding with shells of gas surrounding the dying star.
From Science Daily • Jul. 6, 2026
"Madonna is the only one that spoke up for us in the 90s when people were dying from Aids. She talked about them," he said.
From BBC • Jul. 4, 2026
He asks us to imagine the Eye of Providence looking down on America on the night that Adams and Jefferson were dying.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 2, 2026
That everyone can improve their life through hard work is a core US belief, despite a fierce debate over whether limitless social mobility is dead, dying -- or never existed at all.
From Barron's • Jul. 1, 2026
He lived entirely alone in a perpetually dying forest.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
Definitions 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.
