moribund

adjective

mor·​i·​bund ˈmȯr-ə-(ˌ)bənd 

ˈmär-

1

: being in the state of dying : approaching death

in the moribund patient deepening stupor and coma are the usual preludes to death

—Norman Cameron

2

: being in a state of inactivity or obsolescence

a moribund virus

a moribund volcano

prune the moribund files from your disk forever

—D. S. Janal

moribundity

ˌmȯr-ə-ˈbən-də-tē 

ˌmär-

noun

Did you know?

Moribund Gets Less Literal

Moribund is still sometimes used in its original literal sense of "approaching death", but it's much more often used to describe things. When the economy goes bad, we hear about moribund mills and factories and towns; the economy itself may even be called moribund. Critics may speak of the moribund state of poetry, or lament the moribund record or newspaper industry.

Synonyms

• dying

Examples of moribund in a Sentence

an actor who is trying to revive his moribund career

The peace talks are moribund.

Recent Examples on the Web

And when the veteran Rams receiver returned to the lineup Thursday night after a four-game absence, the recently moribund offense anticipated a welcome jolt. —Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 25 Oct. 2024

Its première in France, last month, reignited a moribund national debate around the issue, transforming Diop into a fixture on radio and television and landing 26 on the cover of the leftist daily Libération. —Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2024

But Israel has only stepped up a fierce ground and air assault on northern Gaza, and, with the region still anticipating an Israeli retaliatory strike against Iran, cease-fire talks remain moribund. —Taylor Luck, The Christian Science Monitor, 21 Oct. 2024

With concerns rising over a moribund real estate market and consumer confidence on the wane, the People’s Bank of China emulated the Fed move with its own 50 basis point cut to its reserve requirement ratio for banks and is injecting cash into the financial system by selling sovereign bonds. —Jeff Cox, CNBC, 27 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin moribundus, from mori to die — more at murder

First Known Use

circa 1721, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

moribund

adjective

mor·​i·​bund ˈmȯr-ə-(ˌ)bənd 

ˈmär-

: nearly dead

Medical Definition

moribund

adjective

mor·​i·​bund ˈmȯr-ə-(ˌ)bənd, ˈmär- 

: being in the state of dying : approaching death

in the moribund patient deepening stupor and coma are the usual preludes to death

—Norman Cameron