(~s, fading, ~d)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
When a coloured object ~s or when the light ~s it, it gradually becomes paler.
All colour ~s–especially under the impact of direct sunlight...
No matter how soft the light is, it still plays havoc, fading carpets and curtains in every room.
...fading portraits of the Queen and Prince Philip.
VERB: V, V n, V-ing
~d
...a girl in a ~d dress.
...~d painted signs on the sides of some of the buildings.
ADJ
2.
When light ~s, it slowly becomes less bright. When a sound ~s, it slowly becomes less loud.
Seaton lay on his bed and gazed at the ceiling as the light ~d...
The sound of the last bomber’s engines ~d into the distance.
VERB: V, V into n
3.
When something that you are looking at ~s, it slowly becomes less bright or clear until it disappears.
They observed the comet for 70 days before it ~d from sight...
They watched the familiar mountains ~ into the darkness.
VERB: V from/into n, V from/into n
•
Fade away means the same as ~ .
We watched the harbour and then the coastline ~ away into the morning mist.
PHRASAL VERB: V P into n, also V P
4.
If memories, feelings, or possibilities ~, they slowly become less intense or less strong.
Sympathy for the rebels, the government claims, is beginning to ~...
...fading memories of better days.
VERB: V, V-ing