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# withers

noun (withers — plural); verb form (wither → withers)

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

## Everyday

1. The withers are the highest point of a horse's back, the ridge between its shoulder blades; horses are measured to the withers. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/withers/#m1)
2. «Withers» is also the form of the verb «wither»: a plant withers when it dries up and dies. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/withers/#m2)

### In the lessons

In riding and farm life, horses and ponies are measured in «hands» from the ground to the withers (one hand = 4 inches, about 10 cm). In science, a plant that withers is drying out. In stories, «withers» (verb) describes plants, hope or old age fading. Phrases: «height at the withers», «withers away».

### Examples

- The pony is 13 hands high at the withers. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/withers/#x1)
- The saddle should not press on the horse's withers. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/withers/#x2)
- The vet felt the withers of the horse to check for pain. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/withers/#x3)
- Without rain, the grass withers and turns brown. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/withers/#x4)
- A flower withers if you leave it out of water. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/withers/#x5)
- My pony is 12 hands at the withers, so 12 × 4 = 48 inches tall. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/withers/#x6)

### Note

Horse sense: plural only, «the withers». Maths: horse height in hands — 1 hand = 4 inches; a pony of 14.2 hands is 14 × 4 + 2 = 58 inches (the number after the dot is inches, not tenths). Verb: wither, withers, withered, withering.

## On Mova

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