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• wither
  wither

  verb (used without object)

  to shrivel; fade; decay.
• Wither
  Wither

  noun

  George, 1588–1667, English poet and pamphleteer.

wither

¹ American  

[with-er] / ˈwɪð ər /

verb (used without object)

• withers,
  present (3rd person singular)
• withered,
  past participle,  past
• withering
  present participle

1. 

   to shrivel; fade; decay.

   The grapes had withered on the vine.

   Synonyms:

   waste, droop, languish, decline, dry, shrink, wrinkle

2. to lose the freshness of youth, as from age (often followed byaway ).

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verb (used with object)

• withers,
  present (3rd person singular)
• withered,
  past participle,  past
• withering
  present participle

1. to make flaccid, shrunken, or dry, as from loss of moisture; cause to lose freshness, bloom, vigor, etc..

   The drought withered the buds.

2. to affect harmfully.

   Reputations were withered by the scandal.

3. to abash, as by a scathing glance.

   a look that withered him.

   Synonyms:

   shame, humiliate

Wither ² American  

[with-er] / ˈwɪð ər /

Also Withers

noun

1. George, 1588–1667, English poet and pamphleteer.

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wither British  

/ ˈwɪðə /

verb

1. (intr) (esp of a plant) to droop, wilt, or shrivel up

2. to fade or waste

   all hope withered away

3. (intr) to decay, decline, or disintegrate

4. (tr) to cause to wilt, fade, or lose vitality

5. (tr) to abash, esp with a scornful look

6. (tr) to harm or damage

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Synonym Usage

Wither, shrivel imply a shrinking, wilting, and wrinkling. Wither (of plants and flowers) is to dry up, shrink, wilt, fade, whether as a natural process or as the result of exposure to excessive heat or drought: Plants withered in the hot sun. Shrivel, used of thin, flat objects and substances, such as leaves, the skin, etc., means to curl, roll up, become wrinkled: The leaves shrivel in cold weather. Paper shrivels in fire.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• witheredness
  noun
• witherer
  noun
• nonwithering
  adjective
• overwithered
  adjective
• unwithered
  adjective
• unwithering
  adjective
• withered
  adjective
• withering
  adjective
• witheringly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Participles

• withering
  present
• withered
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• wither
  simple
• withers
  simple
• have withered
  perfect
• has withered
  perfect
• am withering
  progressive
• are withering
  progressive
• is withering
  progressive
• have been withering
  perfect progressive
• has been withering
  perfect progressive

Past

• withered
  simple
• had withered
  perfect
• was withering
  progressive
• were withering
  progressive
• had been withering
  perfect progressive

Future

• will wither
  simple
• will have withered
  perfect
• will be withering
  progressive
• will have been withering
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of wither

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, perhaps variant of weather (verb)

Explanation

Wither means to shrivel up or shrink. If you forget to water your plants for six weeks, they'll wither — they'll dry up and you probably won't be able to bring them back to life. Wither comes from the Middle English word wydderen, meaning "dry up, shrivel." In addition to shrinking, the verb wither can also refer to losing vitality and fading away, like people who wither as they age. They slowly lose their physical stamina and grow feeble. People also start to physically shrink at a certain age. In that way, they wither in both senses. Not only do they wither by losing their youth, they also wither by shrinking.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

wither Wither withers withered withering

Bumblebee Conservation Trust raised concerns that 2026 may exacerbate a declining trend in bumblebee populations as flowers wither and bees fail to forage effectively.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026

All that promise started to wither around 2015, as social media giants gobbled up more and more of the profits that kept earlier hangouts afloat.

From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2026

Young Joshua trees can be nibbled to death by hungry rabbits and rodents, or wither in drought, disease or fire.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 19, 2026

We do need to eliminate poverty for older Americans, but the answer lies in strengthening SSI, which has been allowed to wither on the vine.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 10, 2026

Char’s answer: “My tongue may wither from disuse here, but at least I shan’t lose words entirely while I still can write to you.”

From "Ella Enchanted" by Gail Carson Levine

“If Uri Geller is disappointed by getting his predictions wrong,” writes Andy, “maybe he’ll cheer himself up with a drink at a Wither Spoons.”

From The Guardian ● Dec. 4, 2021

Wither went on to write for another 25 years.

From Washington Post ● Sep. 7, 2016

Related: Spill Simmer Falter Wither by Sara Baume review – instils fear and wonder And yet, possible though it may be to subsist as an artist in Ireland, it is extremely rare.

From The Guardian ● Mar. 13, 2016

Acentia of Falls Church appointed Cherri Harris director of business development for the science and education sector and Victor Wither senior proposal manager.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 9, 2012

Mr. Wither, he pleaded, should not be hanged, for while Wither lived he was not himself the worst poet in England.

From Highways and Byways in Surrey by Hugh Thomson

For all of us, the self changes and, yes, it withers away.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Hugo, who lives in Towcester, Northamptonshire, has already reached an "abnormal" 199cm tall, about 6.5ft, or 19.2 hands, to the withers or ridge at the base of the neck.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

The horses are characterised by their "large size, long legs, well-developed musculature, slender and elegant head -- set on a long, straight neck -- expressive eyes, high withers and sturdy hooves," he added.

From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026

It also withers behind a paywall, is manipulated by social media algorithms and hollowed out by covert corporate consolidation.

From Salon ● May 26, 2025

He felt the stiff, arched withers of two German police dogs who ran together and often teamed to fight and get licked by the Gray.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

Record heat withered crops, strained businesses and upended everyday life.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026

Instead, they have withered to just 0.2% of payments made in the UK - with a total of 77 million written last year.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

In a city flush with cash, the fund’s purpose withered.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Yet the league's highest-earning clubs have hardly withered in the face of the challenge from outside the six, and Spurs' pursuit of Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali is a reminder of that.

From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026

"The ground does look thirsty," I agree, looking out at the landscape, full of straggly plants and trees with withered leaves.

From "Born Behind Bars" by Padma Venkatraman

It was hardly a withering rebuke of the British move, let alone any kind of punishment.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

The resin-coated pieces highlight all the natural beauty of a Gerbera daisy or a Stargazer lily, without the wilting and withering.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

Germany, along with much of Europe, has seen record-breaking temperatures this summer along with limited rainfall, sending river levels down and withering swathes of countryside.

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

"Sternly staring at inflation until it melts before our withering gaze is not an option."

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

He was withering in his response: Aristotle says that a hundred-pound ball falling from a height of one hundred cubits hits the ground before a one-pound ball has fallen one cubit.

From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin

Related Words

• atrophy
• decay
• deflate
• deteriorate
• disintegrate
• dry
• fade
• languish
• perish
• shrink
• shrivel
• wane
• wilt