: a sudden sharp decline of a population of animals or plants that is not caused directly by human activity
died off; dying off; dies off
: to die sequentially either singly or in numbers so that the total number is greatly diminished
Examples of die-off in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Adrian Rodriguez, The Mercury News, 14 May 2024
This can cause climatic shifts across the globe: landslides in Peru, drought in Australia, fish die-offs in the eastern Pacific and more frequent atmospheric rivers in Southern California.
—Ned Kleiner, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2024
The die-off is not expected to have a lasting effect on the lake's fish populations.
—Tanya Wildt, Detroit Free Press, 11 May 2024
Between April and June of that year, there was a large-scale die-off of wild birds there, again traced to H5N1.
—Helen Branswell, STAT, 9 May 2024
Cows largely recover from H5N1, unlike the mass die-offs seen in other species.
—Alexander Tin, CBS News, 3 May 2024
Bleaching events are becoming more frequent, putting corals on a path for a mass die-off by the end of the century if the planet warms more than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit).
—Ryan Kellman, NPR, 17 Apr. 2024
Six of the rare creatures washed up dead in the past seven days, officials reported Wednesday – a dramatic increase in mortality amid a mysterious die-off that has baffled scientists for months.
—Jen Christensen, CNN, 12 Apr. 2024
The Oregon incident comes on the heels of a mass Chinook salmon smolt die-off in Northern California.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Apr. 2024
Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 7 May 2024
If nests are too warm and larvae die off, that affects the entire colony.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 May 2024
Winds die off a good deal with sunset, then wane further through the night.
—Ian Livingston, Washington Post, 29 Mar. 2024
After the fruit has been harvested from a pineapple plant, the mother plant begins to die off.
—Grace Haynes, Southern Living, 11 Mar. 2024
Share [Findings] Inland waters are emitting previously unaccounted-for levels of carbon dioxide, and freshwater insects are flourishing even as terrestrial insects are dying off.
—Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harper's Magazine, 27 Mar. 2024
Through tonight: Winds die off with the sunset while skies remain mostly clear.
—Ian Livingston, Washington Post, 21 Mar. 2024
This is only needed for a few days - to ensure any remaining lice on those surfaces naturally die off.
—USA TODAY, 16 Mar. 2024
Shading the understory can cause diverse grasses and shrubs to die off–triggering a ripple effect of cascading species losses all across the food web.
—Popular Science, 15 Feb. 2024
Noun
The latest die-off prompted the park service to make the unprecedented decision to place supplementary water tanks and minerals in the preserve in 2021.
—Adrian Rodriguez, The Mercury News, 14 May 2024
This can cause climatic shifts across the globe: landslides in Peru, drought in Australia, fish die-offs in the eastern Pacific and more frequent atmospheric rivers in Southern California.
—Ned Kleiner, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2024
The die-off is not expected to have a lasting effect on the lake's fish populations.
—Tanya Wildt, Detroit Free Press, 11 May 2024
Between April and June of that year, there was a large-scale die-off of wild birds there, again traced to H5N1.
—Helen Branswell, STAT, 9 May 2024
Cows largely recover from H5N1, unlike the mass die-offs seen in other species.
—Alexander Tin, CBS News, 3 May 2024
Bleaching events are becoming more frequent, putting corals on a path for a mass die-off by the end of the century if the planet warms more than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit).
—Ryan Kellman, NPR, 17 Apr. 2024
Six of the rare creatures washed up dead in the past seven days, officials reported Wednesday – a dramatic increase in mortality amid a mysterious die-off that has baffled scientists for months.
—Jen Christensen, CNN, 12 Apr. 2024
The Oregon incident comes on the heels of a mass Chinook salmon smolt die-off in Northern California.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Apr. 2024
Verb
Too often, cultures have died off, leaving no legacy behind because there are no records.
—Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 7 May 2024
If nests are too warm and larvae die off, that affects the entire colony.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 May 2024
Winds die off a good deal with sunset, then wane further through the night.
—Ian Livingston, Washington Post, 29 Mar. 2024
After the fruit has been harvested from a pineapple plant, the mother plant begins to die off.
—Grace Haynes, Southern Living, 11 Mar. 2024
Share [Findings] Inland waters are emitting previously unaccounted-for levels of carbon dioxide, and freshwater insects are flourishing even as terrestrial insects are dying off.
—Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harper's Magazine, 27 Mar. 2024
Through tonight: Winds die off with the sunset while skies remain mostly clear.
—Ian Livingston, Washington Post, 21 Mar. 2024
This is only needed for a few days - to ensure any remaining lice on those surfaces naturally die off.
—USA TODAY, 16 Mar. 2024
Shading the understory can cause diverse grasses and shrubs to die off–triggering a ripple effect of cascading species losses all across the food web.
—Popular Science, 15 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'die-off.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Die-off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/die-off. Accessed 20 May. 2024.
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