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Showing results for perishing. Search instead for unperishing.
Synonyms

perishing

American  
[per-i-shing] / ˈpɛr ɪ ʃɪŋ /

adjective

  1. causing destruction, ruin, extreme discomfort, or death.

    lost in the perishing cold.
perishing British  
/ ˈpɛrɪʃɪŋ /

adjective

  1. informal (of weather, etc) extremely cold

  2. slang (intensifier qualifying something undesirable)

    it's a perishing nuisance!
"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

Other Word Forms

  • nonperishing adjective
  • perishingly adverb
  • unperishing adjective

Etymology

Origin of perishing

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; perish, -ing 2

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.

They looked absolutely freezing, which was not a surprise as it was a perishing January night in Lancashire.

From BBC • Jan. 7, 2026

The young meat-eater had chomped off the hind legs of two parrot-like dinosaurs called caenagnathids before perishing itself.

From National Geographic • Dec. 8, 2023

It’s a symbiotic relationship that won’t be perishing anytime soon.

From Salon • Dec. 2, 2023

Levin yelled out into the roar, anything to take his mind off the thought of perishing in a landslide.

From Slate • Nov. 26, 2022

“Get to it, boy. If you succeed without perishing, you shall be a part of the inner circle.”

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

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.