US /ˈpeɹɪʃ/ UK /ˈpɛɹɪʃ/
verb Freq #9529

Meanings

  1. 1
    verb

    to die or be destroyed, especially suddenly or in harsh conditions

    Many plants perish in a hard frost.

  2. 2
    verb

    to decay or be ruined so that something can no longer be used

    Fresh food can perish quickly in heat.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
1 verb · to die or be destroyed,... dieexpire
2 verb · to decay or be ruined so... spoildecay
Word family
Forms perishedperishesperishethperishing
Derived forms nonperishingperishabilityperisherperishinglyperishlessunperishedunperishing
Related forms perishable

Etymology

From Middle English perishen, borrowed from Old French perir (via the stem periss- used in various conjugations), from Latin perīre (“pass away, perish”), from per (“through”) + īre (“pass, go”).

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