/ ˈwɪðə(r); NAmE / verb
1.
if a plant withers or sth withers it, it dries up and dies :
[ v ]
The grass had withered in the warm sun.
[also vn ]
2.
[ v ] wither (away) to become less or weaker, especially before disappearing completely :
All our hopes just withered away.
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : apparently a variant of weather , ultimately differentiated for certain senses.