withering

«withering» in Mova's school dictionary: Of a plant: drying up, shrinking and dying, for example… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

part of speech

adjective (withering); verb, -ing form of wither (wither, withers, withered, withering)

meaning for a pupil

1) Of a plant: drying up, shrinking and dying, for example because it has no water. tree →

2) (adjective) A withering look or remark is very scornful and makes someone feel small and foolish. tree →

3) (adjective) Extremely strong and damaging, like "withering heat" or "withering fire". tree →

sense in the lessons

In science lessons on plants, leaves start withering when a plant lacks water or light. In stories, "she gave him a withering look" tells the reader she was very unimpressed and made him feel silly. Phrases: "a withering look", "withering criticism", "withering heat".

examples

• The flowers were withering because nobody had watered them. tree →
• Our bean plant in the dark cupboard was withering. tree →
• The teacher gave him a withering look when he walked in late. tree →
• The grass was withering in the summer heat. tree →
• Her withering comment made him go red. tree →
• The leaves are withering and turning brown in autumn. tree →

note

"Wither" is a regular verb (withered, withering). Do not confuse with "whether" (if) or "weather" (rain and sun). A withering look does not hurt the body; it hurts feelings.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «withering» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.