# dieback

> English word · Noun · frequency rank #88,272

## Definitions
1. The browning and death of a plant shoot starting at the tip, due to either disease or climate conditions.
2. The withering of a plant, especially the cyclical withering in autumn and winter; distal parts die off but core parts stay alive (and semidormant or dormant).

## Etymology
Deverbal from die back.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/dieback