What does “perish” mean?
- 1
verbto die, especially in an accident or disaster, in formal or literary language
Hundreds perished when the ship sank.
- 2
verbto rot or decay
Fresh fruit perishes quickly in the heat.
Perish at a glance
- Part of speech
- verb
- CEFR level
- C2 (proficient)
- Pronunciation
- /ˈpɛrɪʃ/ · PAIR-ish
How to use “perish” correctly
Common in news reports about disasters. “Perishable” food goes bad quickly. “Perish the thought!” means “I hope that never happens.”
Common phrases with “perish”
- perish in a fire
- perish the thought
- perishable goods
Synonyms, opposites and related words
Synonyms (similar meaning)
- die
- be killed
- decay
Antonyms (opposite meaning)
- survive
Word family
- perishable
“perish” is on these word lists
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