[with.er] vb with.ered ; with.er.ing [ME widren; prob. akin to ME weder weather] vi (14c) 1: to become dry and sapless; esp: to shrivel from or as if from loss of bodily moisture
2: to lose vitality, force, or freshness ~ vt 1: to cause to wither
2: to make speechless or incapable of action: stun "~ed him with a look --Dorothy Sayers"
[2]wither n (1607) chiefly Brit: withers