expire

[ik-spahyuh r]

verb (used without object), ex·pired, ex·pir·ing.

to come to an end; terminate, as a contract, guarantee, or offer.
to emit the last breath; die.
to breathe out.

to die out, as a fire.

verb (used with object), ex·pired, ex·pir·ing.

to breathe out; emit (air) from the lungs.
Archaic. to give off, emit, or eject.

Origin of expire

1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin ex(s)pīrāre to breathe out, equivalent to ex- ex-¹ + spīrāre to breathe

Related formsex·pir·er, nounex·pir·ing·ly, adverbnon·ex·pir·ing, adjectiveun·ex·pired, adjectiveun·ex·pir·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for expiring

quit, finish, depart, conclude, die, lapse, terminate, cease, pass, close, decease, elapse, end, perish, stop, go, croak, exhale, emit, expel

Examples from the Web for expiring

Contemporary Examples of expiring

They already knew about Stalin expiring, as that was what the amnesty was for.
Prisoners Get Cultural Fix with 8-Tracks and Bootleg Cassettes
Daniel Genis
August 18, 2014
Later generations of medieval copyists would do the same—inserting doctrinal formulae into the mouths of expiring martyrs.
The Death of Jesus and the Rise of the Christian Persecution Myth
Candida Moss
March 31, 2013
We knew the Bush tax cuts were expiring, we knew the sequestration cuts were coming in.
Fiscal Cliff a ‘Self-Inflicted Crisis,’ Says John Avlon
John Avlon
December 5, 2012

Historical Examples of expiring

"But he will come," she thought swiftly, to cover the pang of that expiring hope.
The Innocent Adventuress
Mary Hastings Bradley
"'It's a blinkin' day-dream," returned Joe, forcing the car to an expiring spurt.
The Burning Spear
John Galsworthy
"Can't think when yer drunk, Pete," he muttered with an expiring grin.
The Vagrant Duke
George Gibbs
The grant, however, was expiring, and he petitioned the queen that it might be renewed.
Queen Elizabeth
Jacob Abbott
It was the expiring tribute of allegiance to the chief he adored.
Charles O'Malley, The Irish Dragoon, Volume 2 (of 2)
Charles Lever

British Dictionary definitions for expiring

expire

verb

(intr) to finish or run out; cease; come to an end
to breathe out (air); exhale
(intr) to die

Derived Formsexpirer, noun

Word Origin for expire

C15: from Old French expirer, from Latin exspīrāre to breathe out, from spīrāre to breathe

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for expiring

expire

c.1400, "to die," from Middle French expirer (12c.) "expire, elapse," from Latin expirare/exspirare "breathe out, breathe one's last, die," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + spirare "to breathe" (see spirit). "Die" is the older sense in English; that of "breathe out" is first attested 1580s. Of laws, patents, treaties, etc., mid-15c. Related: Expired; expiring.

expiring in Medicine

expire

[ĭk-spīr′]

To breathe one's last breath; die.
To exhale.