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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

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

Poor Claire and Solange can only watch limply, as their plans of glorious revenge threaten to wither like the fading flowers surrounding them.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 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

She couldn’t look away, even though the sight of it made her wither inside.

From "Huntress" by Malinda Lo

“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

A military genius like Wither would have ordered his men to fire their muskets at the enemy; but all the soldiers on both sides escaped that day.

From Highways and Byways in Surrey by Hugh Thomson

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

As fine arts funding withers across sectors and Hollywood budgets shrink while studios retreat from local productions, workers are still recovering from lengthy strikes and the incipient threat of artificial intelligence.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 22, 2025

The resulting pack animals measured 61 inches, or 15 hands, from the ground to the withers.

From New York Times ● Mar. 14, 2023

Smith pulled the saddle over Seabiscuit’s withers and tightened the girth.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand

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

The first shock was the crumbling of the defending champ Pauline Ferrand-Prevot, who showed early signs that she wasn’t her expected top form, and then withered sadly in a time-trial stage.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 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

They are negotiated with broadcast partners and were primarily designed to prop up the value of contracts with cable and satellite companies, many of which have since withered and died.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 2, 2026

The old woman brought her withered hands together as though she were trying to clap, the way one did to say thank you.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer

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

Waller framed the concern bluntly this month: “Sternly staring at inflation until it melts before our withering gaze is not an option.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Mary Anne raised her eyes imperiously and cast a withering glance at her younger brother who returned it in full.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

Related Words

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