1
as in to die
to stop living
12 people perished in the plane crash
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to decompose
chiefly British
to go through decomposition
after being left out in the summer heat, the milk perished and had to be thrown out
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of perish
As that ocean vanished, its creatures perished, their fossil bones forming the fertile, chalky soils of the South.
—
Caroline Winterer / Made By History, TIME, 14 Jan. 2025
The families of those who have perished in these fires, our hearts are with you.
—NBC News, 12 Jan. 2025
The California Fire Foundation supports victims of wildfires, firefighters, and the families of firefighters who have perished in the line of duty.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 9 Jan. 2025
Most of the animals that perished were small birds, according to officials.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for perish 
Caroline Winterer / Made By History, TIME, 14 Jan. 2025
The families of those who have perished in these fires, our hearts are with you.
—NBC News, 12 Jan. 2025
The California Fire Foundation supports victims of wildfires, firefighters, and the families of firefighters who have perished in the line of duty.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 9 Jan. 2025
Most of the animals that perished were small birds, according to officials.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for perish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for perish
Verb
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Eighteen of the 29 victims who died from the L.A. fires have been identified, according to the medical examiner's office.—
Tommy McArdle,
People.com,
28 Jan. 2025
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The election will fill the seat of the late Sen. Kari Dziedzic, who died last month following a battle with cancer.—
Mary Murphy,
Twin Cities,
28 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Several days later, the WinCo manager noticed a foul smell and called repairmen, who started removing bricks from a column outside the store and discovered a decomposing body.—
Keri Blakinger,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Jan. 2025
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The Shrouds David Cronenberg’s body horror flick stars Vincent Cassel as Karsh, a businessman overwhelmed with grief at the death of his wife who builds a device — a high-tech shroud — to watch her body decompose in real-time.—
Etan Vlessing,
The Hollywood Reporter,
8 Jan. 2025
Verb
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However, as so often is the case, this reaffirmed American ideal fell short of reality.—
AJ Willingham,
CNN,
22 Jan. 2025
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Stunning stat: The snow that has fallen so far in New Orleans exceeds the January snowfall so far in the Twin Cities as well as Anchorage, Alaska.—
Andrew Freedman,
Axios,
22 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Other groups disintegrated amid more prosaic conflicts over priorities and egos.—
Charles Homans,
New York Times,
19 Jan. 2025
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The rocket system's upper stage appears to have disintegrated somewhere over the Gulf of Mexico or possibly the Caribbean Sea.—
Jason Abbruzzese,
NBC News,
17 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The stinging in my eyeballs from sweat and sunscreen mixes with the unmistakable smell of rotting flesh.—
Dac Collins,
Outdoor Life,
16 Jan. 2025
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Wet, continuously soggy soils—more common in winter—can cause the bulbs to rot.—
Andy Wilcox,
Better Homes & Gardens,
13 Jan. 2025
Verb
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What doesn’t decay this winter can be mulched up next spring.—
Jeff Lowenfels,
Anchorage Daily News,
22 Sep. 2022
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In particular, many theorists have wondered how the great complexity of life can be reconciled with the laws of thermodynamics that suggest that all systems must inevitably decay to a state of greatest disorder.—
The Physics arXiv Blog,
Discover Magazine,
29 Apr. 2022
Thesaurus Entries Near perish
Cite this Entry
“Perish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perish. Accessed 1 Feb. 2025.
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