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# wilting

verb form (wilt, wilts, wilted, wilting); adjective (wilting)

«wilting» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. Drooping and going soft because of not enough water, too much heat, or being picked: a wilting flower bends and its leaves hang down. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/#m1)
2. (of a person) Getting tired, weak or less lively, especially in heat: «The children were wilting in the sun.» [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/#m2)
3. Losing confidence or energy: «Her smile was wilting.» [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/#m3)

### In the lessons

In science lessons wilting shows that plants need water: water pushes against plant cells and keeps them stiff; without it the plant goes floppy. If watered in time, a wilting plant can perk up again. In stories a wilting flower can stand for sadness or something ending. Phrases: «wilting in the heat», «wilting flowers».

### Examples

- The sunflowers were wilting because we forgot to water them. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/#x1)
- After an hour in the heat, the football team was wilting. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/#x2)
- The lettuce in the fridge drawer was wilting. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/#x3)
- We watered the wilting basil and it stood up again by evening. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/#x4)
- The bunch of roses had been wilting for days. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/#x5)
- In our experiment, the plant without water started wilting first. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/#x6)
- By the last lap I was wilting like an old daisy. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/#x7)

### Note

Base verb «wilt»; past «wilted». «Wilt» is also an old Bible form of «will» with «thou» («thou wilt»), a different word. Wilting is not dying yet: a wilted plant can often recover. Opposite: perk up, revive.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «wilting» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/wilting/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«wilting» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/wilting.html) on Mova free.