wither

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to navigation Jump to search
See also: wither- and wiþer-

English[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Middle English widren, wydderen (“to dry up, shrivel”), related to or perhaps an alteration of Middle English wederen (“to expose to weather”), from Old English wederian (“to expose to weather, exhibit a change of weather”).

Cognates

From Proto-Germanic: Dutch verwederen, Dutch verweren (“to erode by weather”), German verwittern (“to be ruined by weather; to erode”).

More at weather.

Verb[edit]

wither (third-person singular simple present withers, present participle withering, simple past and past participle withered)

  1. (intransitive) To shrivel, droop or dry up, especially from lack of water.
  2. (transitive) To cause to shrivel or dry up.
  3. (intransitive, figurative) To lose vigour or power; to languish; to pass away.
  4. (intransitive) To become helpless due to emotion.
  5. (transitive) To make helpless due to emotion.
    (Can we add an example for this sense?)
Usage notes[edit]
Derived terms[edit]
Translations[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun[edit]

wither (plural withers)

  1. singular of withers (“part of the back of a four-legged animal that is between the shoulder blades”)
    • 2007, Sara Douglass, Enchanter, Macmillan, →ISBN:
      Timozel had slid his feet quickly from the stirrups and swung his leg over the horse's wither as it slumped to the ground, standing himself in one graceful movement.
    • 2008, Kate Luxmoore, Introduction to Equestrian Sports, →ISBN, page 140:
      If a saddle tips too far forward it may rest on the horse's wither and cause pain. There should always be a gap of roughly 5 cm between the horse's wither and the pommel when you are sitting on the saddle.
Derived terms[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

From Middle English wither, from Old English wiþer (“again, against”, adverb in compounds), from Proto-West Germanic *wiþr (“against, toward”).

Cognates

From Proto-Germanic: Low German wedder (“against”), Dutch weer (“again, back”), German wider (“against, contrary to”), German wieder (“again”), Gothic 𐍅𐌹𐌸𐍂𐌰 (wiþra), Old Norse viðr.

More at with.

Adverb[edit]

wither (comparative more wither, superlative most wither)

  1. (obsolete or chiefly in compounds) Against, in opposition to.

Etymology 4[edit]

From Middle English witheren, from Old English wiþerian (“to resist, oppose, struggle against”).

Cognates

From Proto-Germanic: Middle Dutch wideren, Old High German widarōn.

Verb[edit]

wither (third-person singular simple present withers, present participle withering, simple past and past participle withered)

  1. (obsolete) To go against, resist; oppose.

Anagrams[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=wither&oldid=78837208"