First recorded in 1935–40; noun use of verb phrase die off
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In 2015, the antelope suffered a mass die-off and it was feared that the Ice Age survivors would become extinct.
From BBC ● Mar. 24, 2026
The end-Permian mass extinction, the most devastating die-off in Earth's history, struck about 252 million years ago and was followed by extreme global warming.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 25, 2026
These toxic elements sat in the channel’s then-stagnant water, which led to a die-off of all vegetation and the emission of foul-smelling hydrogen sulfide.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 7, 2026
Earlier this year, scientists warned that bird flu had sparked the worst die-off on record for southern elephant seals when it spread among a population on Argentina's coast in 2023.
From Barron's ● Nov. 13, 2025
The die-off happened amazingly fast—the statistics, according to the study, suggest that it was instantaneous.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Species develop a new specialty, exploit that niche, grow rapidly, die off slowly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
The condition develops when specialized brain cells that produce dopamine gradually die off.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 28, 2026
The rate at which trees die off in a forest can vary in response to different types of disturbances, or as forests grow thicker and there is greater competition for resources.
From Barron's ● Jan. 6, 2026
"If we don't do any conservation and let nature take its course and let say the oak die off, you would lose the wider biodiversity around that," said Mr Masters from Kew Gardens.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2025
So the centers were shut down and the birds were abandoned to die off in the wild.
From "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins
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.
