TOP

Definition of wilt verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

wilt

verb
 
/wɪlt/
 
/wɪlt/
Verb Forms
present simple I / you / we / they wilt
 
/wɪlt/
 
/wɪlt/
he / she / it wilts
 
/wɪlts/
 
/wɪlts/
past simple wilted
 
/ˈwɪltɪd/
 
/ˈwɪltɪd/
past participle wilted
 
/ˈwɪltɪd/
 
/ˈwɪltɪd/
-ing form wilting
 
/ˈwɪltɪŋ/
 
/ˈwɪltɪŋ/
jump to other results
  1. [intransitive] (of a plant or flower) to bend towards the ground because of the heat or a lack of water
    • Some of the leaves were beginning to wilt.
    • The plants will wilt in direct sunlight.
    synonym droop
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • visibly
    verb + wilt
    • begin to
    preposition
    • in
    • under
    • with
    See full entry
  2. [intransitive] (informal) to become weak or tired or less confident synonym flag
    • The spectators were wilting visibly in the hot sun.
    • He was wilting under the pressure of work.
    Extra Examples
    • By half-time, the team was wilting under the pressure.
    • The passengers were visibly wilting with the heat and movement of the bus.
    Topics Feelingsc2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • visibly
    verb + wilt
    • begin to
    preposition
    • in
    • under
    • with
    See full entry
  3. thou wilt
    (old use) used to mean ‘you will’, when talking to one person
  4. Word Originsenses 1 to 2 late 17th cent. (originally dialect): perhaps an alteration of dialect welk ‘lose freshness’, of Low German origin.
See wilt in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary

Other results

All matches
trait
noun
 
 
From the Word list
Oxford 5000
B2
Oxford Learner's Dictionaries Word of the Day