perish
To die, or to be destroyed or ruined.
perish in a sentence
- Without water, the flowers in the vase will soon perish.
- Rubber bands perish and snap if they are left in the sun for too long.
Try an 11+ style question
Verbal reasoning papers often ask about a word like this.
Which word is closest in meaning to perish?
- Adie
- Bendure
- Clive
- Dsurvive
Show the answer
A: die. The other three mean the opposite of perish.
Which word is most nearly opposite in meaning to perish?
- Adie
- Bdecay
- Cwither
- Dsurvive
Show the answer
D: survive. The other three mean nearly the same as perish.
Words that mean something similar
die, wither, decay
Words that mean the opposite
survive, live, endure
More words about time & change
- potential: Possible in the future, though not happening yet.
- predicament: A tricky situation that is hard to get out of.
- prevail: To win in the end or to be the strongest.
- previous: Coming before the one you are talking about.
- primitive: Very simple and from an early time, without modern comforts.
- procrastinate: To keep putting off something you should do now.
- prolong: To make something last longer.
- promote: To move someone up to a more important position.
More words to explore
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test