wither on the vine

Idioms  

1. Fail to come to fruition, as in This building project will wither on the vine if they don't agree on a price. This expression alludes to grapes shriveling and drying up because they were not picked when ripe.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

wither on the vine

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

It is just going to wither on the vine.

From Salon ● Jun. 3, 2024

"There is a risk that without this central subsidy, the National Tutoring Programme will wither on the vine," the report said.

From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2023

When my vegetables wither on the vine, or succumb to bugs or moths or lack of drainage, I tell myself: It’s not about the end product.

From New York Times ● Sep. 10, 2020

But every idea, no matter how good, seemed to wither on the vine of his imagination.

From "We'll Fly Away" by Bryan Bliss