- singular of dice.
die
1 Americanverb (used without object)
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to cease to live; undergo the complete and permanent cessation of all vital functions; become dead.
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(of something inanimate) to cease to exist.
The laughter died on his lips.
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to lose force, strength, or active qualities.
Superstitions die slowly.
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to cease to function; stop.
The motor died.
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to be no longer subject; become indifferent.
to die to worldly matters.
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to pass gradually; fade or subside gradually (usually followed by away, out, ordown ).
The storm slowly died down.
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Theology. to lose spiritual life.
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to faint or languish.
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to suffer as if fatally.
I'm dying of boredom!
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to pine with desire, love, longing, etc..
I'm dying to see my home again.
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to desire or want keenly or greatly.
I'm dying for a cup of coffee.
verb phrase
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die off to die one after another until the number is greatly reduced.
Her friends are dying off.
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die out
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to cease to exist; become extinct.
Both lines of the family died out before the turn of the century.
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to die away; fade; subside.
The roar of the engines died out as the rocket vanished into the clouds.
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die down to become calm or quiet; subside.
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die away (of a sound) to become weaker or fainter and then cease.
The hoofbeats gradually died away.
idioms
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to die for, stunning; remarkable.
That dress is to die for.
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die standing up, (of a performance) to be received with silence rather than applause.
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die hard,
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to die only after a bitter struggle.
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to give way or surrender slowly or with difficulty.
Childhood beliefs die hard.
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never say die, never give up hope; never abandon one's efforts.
noun
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dies,
plural
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dice
plural
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Machinery.
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any of various devices for cutting or forming material in a press or a stamping or forging machine.
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a hollow device of steel, often composed of several pieces to be fitted into a stock, for cutting the threads of bolts or the like.
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one of the separate pieces of such a device.
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a steel block or plate with small conical holes through which wire, plastic rods, etc., are drawn.
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an engraved stamp for impressing a design upon some softer material, as in coining money.
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singular of dice.
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Architecture. dado.
verb (used with object)
idioms
verb
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(of an organism or its cells, organs, etc) to cease all biological activity permanently
she died of pneumonia
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(of something inanimate) to cease to exist; come to an end
the memory of her will never die
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to lose strength, power, or energy, esp by degrees
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to become calm or quiet; subside
the noise slowly died down
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to stop functioning
the engine died
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to languish or pine, as with love, longing, etc
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informal (usually foll by of) to be nearly overcome (with laughter, boredom, etc)
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theol to lack spiritual life within the soul, thus separating it from God and leading to eternal punishment
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(tr) to undergo or suffer (a death of a specified kind) (esp in phrases such as die a saintly death )
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(foll by to) to become indifferent or apathetic (to)
to die to the world
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informal never give up
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to cease to exist after resistance or a struggle
old habits die hard
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to die while still working or active, prior to retirement
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to be eager or desperate (for something or to do something)
I'm dying to see the new house
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informal highly desirable
a salary to die for
noun
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a shaped block of metal or other hard material used to cut or form metal in a drop forge, press, or similar device
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a tool of metal, silicon carbide, or other hard material with a conical hole through which wires, rods, or tubes are drawn to reduce their diameter
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an internally-threaded tool for cutting external threads Compare tap 2
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a casting mould giving accurate dimensions and a good surface to the object cast See also die-cast
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architect the dado of a pedestal, usually cubic
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another name for dice
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perfectly honest
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the decision that commits a person irrevocably to an action has been taken
Usage
What is a basic definition of die? Die is a verb that means to stop living, to stop existing, or to stop functioning. Die has several other senses as a verb and a noun. When somebody dies, they are no longer alive. They have become dead. All living things will eventually die. Someone can die from disease, violence, or anything else that causes their vital organs (heart, brain, liver, kidneys, and lungs) to stop working.
- Real-life examples: Everyone who is dead has died. Plants die when they don’t get enough sunlight and water. Animals die from many of the same things as humans. Antibiotics are designed to cause disease-causing bacteria to die.
- Used in a sentence: I forgot to water my sunflower, so it died.
- Used in a sentence: My dreams of being a rock star will never die.
- Used in a sentence: I managed to upload all of my files before my laptop died.
Synonym Usage
Die, pass away ( pass on; pass ), perish mean to relinquish life. To die is to become dead from any cause and in any circumstances. It is the simplest, plainest, and most direct word for this idea, and is used figuratively of anything that has once displayed activity: An echo, flame, storm, rumor dies. Pass away (or pass on or pass ) is a commonly used euphemism implying a continuation of life after death: Grandfather passed away ( passed on or passed ). Perish, a more literary term, implies death under harsh circumstances such as hunger, cold, neglect, etc.; figuratively, perish connotes utter extinction: Hardship caused many pioneers to perish. Ancient Egyptian civilization has perished.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of die1
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English dien, deien, from Old Norse deyja; cf. dead, death
Origin of die2
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English de (in early Modern English taking the vowel of the plural form dice ), from Old French de(i), presumably from Latin datum “given” (neuter past participle of dare “to give”), perhaps in the derivative sense “put, placed,” hence “played, cast”
Explanation
Your friend would be furious if you promised you would water his plants while he was out of town, and then let his favorite fern die. To die is to expire, or to cease to be alive. The verb to die means "to stop living," and it's also used to exaggerate a need or want, like when you say, "I would die to have those shoes." When die is a noun, it means a metal-cutting tool or the single form of dice: "Hand me the die, it's my turn to roll." When you're talking about permanently staining or coloring something, you have to use the word dye.
Vocabulary lists containing die
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"I have lived through all the stages of the occupation, and I will die here."
From Barron's ● Oct. 24, 2026
About one to three people out of 1,000 die from measles, with children at the greatest risk of dying.
From Salon ● Oct. 24, 2026
More than 3,200 people die every year from scorpion stings globally, according to figures cited in the report.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 20, 2026
There is just one problem: Too many salmon die too young.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026
He would “conquer or die in the attempt!”
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Have you had enough of the mayor you know, and are you ready to roll the dice on someone you don’t?
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
Cracked trays, high costs and a dice dilemma bogged down one company’s mission to produce a version of the classic game in the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
"We're rolling the dice with our children," Carter declared at a House of Representatives hearing.
From Barron's ● Sep. 29, 2026
He plans to pay the fine — roughly one game’s worth of pay — pass go and roll the dice again like nothing happened.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
They all took turns rolling the dice and moving their pieces through the squares in different parts of Harmonee.
From "The Stars Beneath Our Feet" by David Barclay Moore
Roth conversions make the most sense for married couples with large IRA balances, because after one spouse dies, the other will have to pay taxes as a single person on the same amount of money.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2026
"As they say, hope dies last," he told me.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
But I’ve never wanted to be like, “Oh, well, then Hal’s president. Then, Hal dies, and Kate’s president! Everybody gets a chance.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
A hero of the Civil War dies, and a martyr is born.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
The chanting dies off for a second, but then there's a loud crash.
From "Born Behind Bars" by Padma Venkatraman
Noah Adams, a longtime host of NPR news program “All Things Considered” and a journalist known for his gentle voice and genuine curiosity, has died.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 25, 2026
Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, 42, died earlier this month after he fell from the Goliath.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2026
Shane died in 2022 at the age of 17, followed by his mother in 2023.
From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026
In other words, if you invested $100,000 in an immediate or income annuity right now, as a man you’d earn $8,400 a year and as a woman you’d earn $8,000 until you died.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2026
We know she was a devout Catholic who grew up in the Philippines, was confined in leprosariums for much of her life, and died in the United States.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Are you living and dieing by weather forecasts?
From Time Magazine Archive
Coquets, and prudes, ought tew be compelled to hunt in couples, so that when the coquet haz wounded the game, the prude kan nuss the dieing viktim.
From The Complete Works of Josh Billings by Henry W. Shaw
"It's more interesting than dieing, and will be a novelty in this House."
From Bab: a Sub-Deb by Mary Roberts Rinehart
Now see here, Miss Bab, you've just come Home, and there was trouble at your last vacation that I'm like to remember to my dieing day.
From Bab: a Sub-Deb by Mary Roberts Rinehart
The hum buggs don’t generally live a grate while at once, but have the fackulty ov dieing in one place, and being suddenly born in another.
From The Complete Works of Josh Billings by Henry W. Shaw
New music may not be dying out, but it's clear it has a lot to contend with in 2026.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026
"I'm scared because we have been hearing about the news, the way people are dying in the Congo," Patrick Akwongu, 61, who flew in from Italy with a layover in Addis Ababa told AFP.
From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026
I guess all it took was almost dying … godlike behavior.
From Salon ● Oct. 21, 2026
The key question heading into this weekend is about the hazard ratio for recurrence-free survival, which is the time from treatment to the cancer’s coming back or the patient’s dying.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2026
She wanted to ask why the tsar sent men to fight, then, if he was so concerned with people dying.
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
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