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withered

[with-er]

verb (used without object)

to shrivel; fade; decay: The grapes had withered on the vine.

to lose the freshness of youth, as from age (often followed by away).

verb (used with object)

to make flaccid, shrunken, or dry, as from loss of moisture; cause to lose freshness, bloom, vigor, etc.: The drought withered the buds.

to affect harmfully: Reputations were withered by the scandal.

to abash, as by a scathing glance: a look that withered him.

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Withered is always a great word to know.

So is callithumpian. Does it mean:

a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.

the offspring of a zebra and a donkey.

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Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English, perhaps variant of weather (v.)

Related forms

with·ered·ness, noun

with·er·er, noun

with·er·ing·ly, adverb

non·with·er·ing, adjective

o·ver·with·ered, adjective

EXPAND

un·with·ered, adjective

un·with·er·ing, adjective

COLLAPSE

Can be confused: 1. weather, whether, whither, wither (see synonym note at the current entry); 2. whither, wither.

Synonyms
1. wrinkle, shrink, dry, decline, languish, droop, waste. 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. 5. humiliate, shame.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To withered

Example Sentences

It should be bright and squeaky, the leaves dark green, not yellow or withered.

Hundreds of herdsmen and tens of thousands of cattle have withered and died on futile treks in search of pasture.

Long vistas and the dry season's withered vegetation enable keen eyes to spot game miles away.

EXPAND

It should be bright and squeaky, the leaves dark green, not yellow or withered.

Hundreds of herdsmen and tens of thousands of cattle have withered and died on futile treks in search of pasture.

Long vistas and the dry season's withered vegetation enable keen eyes to spot game miles away.

Imagine hair that sprouts in skeins from once withered follicles.

And wearing the slippers, on the couch, a withered old lady in sweatpants.

Now it's the opposite: the scorched and withered lawn shows you're a good eco-citizen and team player.

The monthly retainer withered away and banks began demanding a percentage of the deal.

The skin pulsed red and sporadically flickered, gradually fading to pallid white as brain activity withered.

Two examples:In an accompanying photograph, a withered.

Its economy has barely grown and its regional influence has withered.

Jackie, once a pretty brunette with friendly eyes and a mischievous smile, had been withered by the disease.

America's corporate taxes have withered to insignificance because of the mobility of firms.

Those who are loitering by the withered tree are waiting for salvation, which never comes.

Her bent and withered frame shudders as the tears slide down her face and into her lap.

Britain's large manufacturing clusters withered and died.

The baby looks withered and unnaturally aged as it struggles for breath in its mother's.

Age has not withered it--indeed it is only thirty five years old.

After a few months of struggle the barber's creative soul is withered and he gives in.

We've made a sort of grotesque doll, a simulacrum of a friend, to play with to replace our withered connection with other humans.

Most of them flourished during segregation and then withered and died when integration.

In the other, the defense withered in the face of a creative onslaught.

Here and there a defiant cheek bore the mark of our withered tribe.

Romanian rugby withered after its political upheavals.

Though his legs weren't paralyzed, they withered and became too weak to support him.

For months before then, this withered city provided one of the few havens for thousands.

The trees direct her to a red-rose tree, but one too withered from winter to produce.

Such news is likely to cheer many business owners whose sales have withered in the searing heat.

Most of them flourished during segregation and then withered and died when integration arrived.

While the station has evolved into one of the busiest in the borough, it has withered with years of heavy use and neglect.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

wither (ˈwɪðə)

—vb (often foll by away)
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

[C14: perhaps variant of weather (vb); related to German verwittern to decay]

'withered

—*adj*

'witherer

—n

'withering

—*adj*

'witheringly

—*adv*

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

wither

1530s, alteration of M.E. wydderen "dry up, shrivel" (c.1300), apparently a differentiated and special use of wederen "to expose to weather" (see weather). Cf. Ger. verwittern "to become weather-beaten," from Witter "weather."

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