perish definition | Dictionary.com

per⋅ish

[per-ish]

–verb (used without object)

1.	to die or be destroyed through violence, privation, etc.: to perish in an earthquake.

2.	to pass away or disappear: an age of elegance that has forever perished.

3.	to suffer destruction or ruin: His valuable paintings perished in the fire.

4.	to suffer spiritual death: Save us, lest we perish.

—Idiom

5.	perish the thought, may it never happen: used facetiously or as an afterthought of foreboding.

Origin:
1200–50; ME perissen < OF periss-, long s. of perir < L perīre to perish, lit., go through, spend fully, equiv. to per- per- + īre to go

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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Language Translation for : perish

Spanish:

perecer, fallecer,

German:

umkommen,

Japanese:

死ぬ

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per·ish   (pěr'ĭsh) Pronunciation Key
v.   per·ished, per·ish·ing, per·ish·es

v.   intr.

To die or be destroyed, especially in a violent or untimely manner: "Must then a Christ perish in torment in every age to save those who have no imagination?" (George Bernard Shaw).
To pass from existence; disappear gradually: "Man will go down into the pit, and all his thoughts will perish" (A.J. Balfour).
Chiefly British To spoil or deteriorate.

v. tr.
To bring to destruction; destroy: "Many foul blights/Perish'd his hard won gains" (Thomas Hood).

[Middle English perishen, from Old French perir, periss-, to perish, from Latin perīre : per-, per- + īre, to go; see ei- in Indo-European roots.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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perish

c.1250, from periss- prp. stem of O.Fr. perir, from L. perire "to be lost, perish," lit. "to go through," from per- "through, completely, to destruction" + ire "to go." Perishables in ref. to foodstuffs is attested from 1895.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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perish
verb
pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life; "She died from cancer"; "The children perished in the fire"; "The patient went peacefully"; "The old guy kicked the bucket at the age of 102" [syn: die] [ant: be born]

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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perish

In addition to the idiom beginning with perish, also see publish or perish.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Perish

Per"ish\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Perished; p. pr. & vb. n. Perishing.] [OE. perissen, perisshen, F. p['e]rir, p. pr. p['e]rissant, L. perire to go or run through, come to nothing, perish; per through + ire to go. Cf. Issue, and see -ish.] To be destroyed; to pass away; to become nothing; to be lost; to die; hence, to wither; to waste away.

I perish with hunger! --Luke xv. 17.

Grow up and perish, as the summer fly. --Milton.

The thoughts of a soul that perish in thinking. --Locke.

Perish

Per"ish\, v. t. To cause perish. [Obs.] --Bacon.