wilt

B2 Topic:Actions & Processes

US /wɪlt/ UK /wɪlt/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

verb
to become limp or drooping, often due to lack of water or vitality

The flowers began to wilt in the heat.
2

verb
to lose strength, energy, or confidence

He started to wilt under the pressure of the competition.
3

noun
a plant's drooping or limp condition

The plant showed signs of wilt after days without water.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to become limp or drooping,... wither sag droop shrivel fade

2 verb · to lose strength, energy,... tire flag languish weaken fade

3 noun · a plant's drooping or limp... droop sag withering limpness

Opposites

flourish thriveperk uprevive

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

wilt disease
a plant disease that causes leaves or stems to droop and shrivel

Noun + noun

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *weljan (to wither), via Old English and Middle English wilten (to lose freshness); modern English wilt means to become limp or droop.

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# wilt

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** verb, noun
**IPA (US):** /wɪlt/
**IPA (UK):** /wɪlt/

## Meanings
1. to become limp or drooping, often due to lack of water or vitality
2. to lose strength, energy, or confidence
3. a plant's drooping or limp condition

## Examples
- The flowers began to wilt in the heat.
- He started to wilt under the pressure of the competition.
- The plant showed signs of wilt after days without water.

## Synonyms
- wither
- sag
- droop
- shrivel
- fade
- tire
- flag
- languish
- weaken
- limpness

## Antonyms
- flourish
- thrive
- perk up
- revive

## Etymology
From Proto-Germanic *weljan (to wither), via Old English and Middle English wilten (to lose freshness); modern English wilt means to become limp or droop.

## AI Etymology
Wilt comes from Proto-Germanic *weljan (to wither), via Old English and Middle English wilten (to lose freshness); modern English wilt means to become limp or droop. In current use it is a verb and noun meaning "to become limp or drooping, often due to lack of water or vitality". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The history is mainly one of transmission into English, with the older form and sense carried through borrowing or adaptation. For dictionary purposes, the important point is the continuity between the older form, the route into English, and the present lexical sense.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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