See also: dié, diè, diē, Diè, dîe, Die, δῖε, and DIE

English edit

Alternative forms edit

Pronunciation edit

Etymology 1 edit

From Middle English deyen, from Old English dīeġan and Old Norse deyja, both from Proto-Germanic *dawjaną (to die). Displaced Old English sweltan, whence Modern English swelt.

Verb edit

die (third-person singular simple present dies, present participle dying, simple past and past participle died)

  1. (intransitive) To stop living; to become dead; to undergo death.
    1. followed by of as an indication of direct cause; general use:
      He died of malaria.
      • 1838, Boz [pseudonym; Charles Dickens], chapter 6, in Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy’s Progress. [], volumes (please specify |volume=I, II, or III), London: Richard Bentley, [], →OCLC:
        "What did she die of, Work'us?" said Noah.
        "Of a broken heart, some of our old nurses told me," replied Oliver [] .
      • 2000, Stephen King, On Writing, Pocket Books, published 2002, page 85:
        In 1971 or 72, Mom's sister Carolyn Weimer died of breast cancer.
    2. followed by from as an indication of direct cause; general use, though somewhat more common in the context of medicine or the sciences:
      He died from heart failure.
      • 1865 March 4, British Medical Journal, page 213:
        She lived several weeks; but afterwards she died from epilepsy, to which malady she had been previously subject.
      • 2007, Frank Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson, Sandworms of Dune, Tor, published 2007, page 191:
        "Or all of them will die from the plague. Even if most of the candidates succumb [] "
    3. followed by for; often expressing wider contextual motivations, though sometimes indicating direct causes:
      He died for the one he loved.
      • 1961, Joseph Heller, Catch-22, Simon & Schuster, published 1999, page 232:
        Englishmen are dying for England, Americans are dying for America, Germans are dying for Germany, Russians are dying for Russia. There are now fifty or sixty countries fighting in this war.
      • 2003, Tara Herivel, Paul Wright, editors, Prison Nation, Routledge, page 187:
        Less than three days later, Johnson lapsed into a coma in his jail cell and died for lack of insulin.
    4. (now rare) followed by with as an indication of direct cause:
      • 1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i]:
        Therefore let Benedicke like covered fire, / Consume away in sighes, waste inwardly: / It were a better death, to die with mockes, / Which is as bad as die with tickling.
      • 1830, Joseph Smith, The Book of Mormon, Richards, published 1854, page 337:
        And there were some who died with fevers, which at some seasons of the year was very frequent in the land.
    5. (uncommon, nonstandard outside video games) followed by to as an indication of direct cause (like from):
      I can't believe I just died to a turret!
      • 2014, S. J. Groves, The Darker Side to Dr Carter, page 437:
        Dr Thomas concluded she had died to a blow to the head, which led to a bleed on the brain, probably a fall and had hit her head hard on the wooden bedpost, as there was blood on the bedpost.
    6. (still current) followed by with as an indication of manner:
      She died with dignity.
  2. (transitive) To (stop living and) undergo (a specified death).
    He died a hero's death.
    They died a thousand deaths.
    • 2019, Lou Marinoff, On Human Conflict: The Philosophical Foundations of War and Peace, Rowman & Littlefield, →ISBN, page 452:
      [] he chose instead to suffer even greater personal pain, with unimaginable fortitude and resolve, albeit for a shorter time. Thus he died a small death, in order to benefit the living. Similarly, a small and voluntary death was died by Socrates.
  3. (video games, slang) To lose a game.
    • 1995, “Slobzone”, in Coming Soon! magazine[1] (video game review):
      Of course, Nazis are not present in this game. Instead, we have animals that will try to cover you with dirt. As soon as you get too dirty, you will die.
    Whenever my brother dies, he ragequits.
  4. (intransitive, figuratively) To yearn intensely.
    I'm dying for a packet of crisps.
    I'm dying for a piss.
    • 1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:
      Yes, and his ill conditions; and in despite of all, dies for him.
    • 2004, Paul Joseph Draus, Consumed in the city: observing tuberculosis at century's end, page 168:
      I could see that he was dying, dying for a cigarette, dying for a fix maybe, dying for a little bit of freedom, but trapped in a hospital bed and a sick body.
  5. (intransitive, uncommon, idiomatic) To be or become hated or utterly ignored or cut off, as if dead.
    The day our sister eloped, she died to our mother.
    • 2015, Emily Duvall, Inclusions, page 150:
      "My dad [] beat us until we couldn't sit down." [] "What about your mother?" [] "She's alive. [] My aunt visits her once a year, but I don't ask about my mother. She died to me the day she chose my father over protecting us." Luke's voice hitched with emotion.
    • 2017, Mike Hoornstra, Descent into the Maelstrom, page 366:
      "You haven't been my son since you were ten years old. That boy died to me the day he ran away. I don't know you. You are merely a shell that resembles someone I used to know, but you are dead to me. You are the bringer of pain and death. Leave me be. Leave me with my son, Jyosh." "Mother..." Barlun pleaded.
  6. (intransitive, figuratively) To become spiritually dead; to lose hope.
    He died a little inside each time she refused to speak to him.
    • 2011, Ingrid Michaelson (lyrics and music), “Ghost”, in Human Again[2]:
      Do you know that I went down / To the ground / Landed on both my broken-hearted knees... / [] I didn't even cry / 'Cause pieces of me had already died
  7. (intransitive, colloquial, hyperbolic) To be mortified or shocked by a situation.
    If anyone sees me wearing this ridiculous outfit, I'll die.
  8. (intransitive, figurative, hyperbolic) To be so overcome with emotion or laughter as to be incapacitated.
    When I found out my two favorite musicians would be recording an album together, I literally planned my own funeral arrangements and died.
    • 1976, an anchorman on Channel Five in California, quoted in Journal and Newsletter [of the] California Classical Association, Northern Section:
      I literally died when I saw that.
  9. (intransitive, of a machine) To stop working; to break down or otherwise lose "vitality".
    My car died in the middle of the freeway this morning.
    Sorry I couldn't call you. My phone died.
    My battery died and my charger was at home.
  10. (intransitive, of a computer program) To abort, to terminate (as an error condition).
  11. (intransitive, of a legislative bill or resolution) To expire at the end of the session of a legislature without having been brought to a vote.
    The proposed gas tax died after the powerful rural senator refused to let it out of committee.
  12. To perish; to cease to exist; to become lost or extinct.
  13. To sink; to faint; to pine; to languish, with weakness, discouragement, love, etc.
  14. (often with "to") To become indifferent; to cease to be subject.
    to die to pleasure or to sin
  15. (architecture) To disappear gradually in another surface, as where mouldings are lost in a sloped or curved face.
  16. To become vapid, flat, or spiritless, as liquor.
  17. (of a stand-up comedian or a joke) To fail to evoke laughter from the audience.
    Then there was that time I died onstage in Montreal...
Usage notes edit
1611, King James Bible
I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain. (Gal. 2:21)
Conjugation edit
Synonyms edit
Derived terms edit
Related terms edit
Descendants edit
  • Vietnamese: đai
Translations edit

Etymology 2 edit

A pair of common dice with six sides each.
Various dice with different numbers of sides and distributions of values.
Dies (sense 6) on a wafer.

From Middle English dee, from Old French de (Modern French ), from Latin datum, from datus (given), the past participle of (to give), from Proto-Indo-European *deh₃- (to lay out, to spread out). Doublet of datum.

Replaced Old English tasul, tesul (die), from Latin tessella (die, cube).

Noun edit

die (plural dies)

  1. The cubical part of a pedestal; a plinth.
  2. A device for cutting into a specified shape.
  3. A device used to cut an external screw thread. (Internal screw threads are cut with a tap.)
  4. A mold for forming metal or plastic objects.
  5. An embossed device used in stamping coins and medals.
  6. (semiconductors, plural also dice) An oblong chip fractured from a semiconductor wafer engineered to perform as an independent device or integrated circuit.
    • 2002, John L. Hennessy, David A. Patterson, Computer Architecture: A Quantitative Approach, Elsevier, →ISBN, page 19:
      The number of dies per wafer is basically the area of the wafer divided by the area of the die.
    • 2009, Paul R. Gray, Analysis and Design of Analog Integrated Circuits, 5th edition, John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN, page 159:
      Once the wafer has undergone the wafer-probe test, it is separated into individual dice by sawing or scribing and breaking. The dice are visually inspected, sorted, and readied for assembly into packages.
  7. Any small cubical or square body.
    • 1741, I[saac] Watts, The Improvement of the Mind: Or, A Supplement to the Art of Logick: [], London: [] James Brackstone, [], →OCLC:
      Some young creatures have learnt their letters and syllables, and the pronouncing and spelling of words, by having them pasted or written upon many little flat tablets or dies.

Noun edit

die (plural dice or (nonstandard) dies)

  1. An isohedral polyhedron, usually a cube, with numbers or symbols on each side and used in games of chance.
    Most dice are six-sided.
    I rolled the die and moved 2 spaces on the board.
    • 1748, [David Hume], “Of Probability”, in Philosophical Essays Concerning Human Understanding, London: [] A[ndrew] Millar, [], →OCLC, page 94:
      If a Dye were mark’d with one Figure or Number of Spots on four Sides, and with another Figure or Number of Spots on the two remaining Sides, ’twould be more probable, that the former ſhould turn up than the latter;
    • 2000, Richard Shoup, edited by Barry Lenson, Take Control Of Your Life: How to Control Fate, Luck, Chaos, Karma, and Life’s Other Unruly Forces, McGraw-Hill, →ISBN, page 42:
      When you roll two dies—or three, or four—the odds of obtaining a specific number becomes complex in a logarithmic progression.
    • 2012, Rinaldo B. Schinazi, “Probability Space”, in Probability with Statistical Applications, 2nd edition, Birkhäuser, →ISBN, “Independent Events”, “Exercises”, page 16:
      We roll two dies repeatedly until we get the first double.
    • 2014, Ionut Florescu, Ciprian A. Tudor, Handbook of Probability, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., →ISBN:
      Roll two dies 24 times. What is the probability of rolling at least one double 6?
    • 2017 December 8, “Adorable Kitten”, in Unstable, Wizards of the Coast:
      When this creature enters the battlefield, roll a six-sided die. You gain life equal to the result.
  2. (obsolete) That which is, or might be, determined, by a throw of the die; hazard; chance.
Usage notes edit

The game of dice is singular. Thus in "Dice is a game played with dice," the first occurrence is singular, the second occurrence is plural. See also the usage notes under "dice".

Synonyms edit
Derived terms edit
Translations edit

Etymology 3 edit

Variant spelling.

Noun edit

die (plural dies)

  1. Obsolete spelling of dye
    • 1749, Henry Fielding, Tom Jones:
      He hath carried his friendship to this man to a blameable length, by too long concealing facts of the blackest die.

Verb edit

die (third-person singular simple present dies, present participle dying, simple past and past participle died)

  1. Obsolete spelling of dye
    • 1739, John Cay, An abridgment of the publick statutes in force and use from Magna Charta, in the ninth year of King Henry III, to the eleventh year of his present Majesty King George II, inclusive, Drapery, XXVII. Sect. 16:
      Also no dyer shall die any cloth, except he die the cloth and the list with one colour, without tacking any bulrushes or such like thing upon the lists, upon pain to forfeit 40 s. for every cloth. And no person shall put to sale any cloth deceitfully dyed,
    • 1813, James Haigh, The Dier's Assistant in the Art of Dying Wool and Woollen Goods:
      To die wool with madder, prepare a fresh liquor, and when the water is come to a heat to bear the hand, put in half a pound of the finest grape madder for each pound of wool;
    • 1827, John Shepard, The artist & tradesman's guide: embracing some leading facts:
      To die Wool and Woollen Cloths of a Blue Colour. One part of indigo, in four parts concentrated sulphuric acid, dissolved; then add one part of dry carbonate of potash, [...]

See also edit

terms etymologically unrelated to the above

Anagrams edit

Afrikaans edit

Alternative forms edit

  • di (obsolete)

Etymology edit

From Dutch die, which is used only as a demonstrative in Dutch. The replacement of the article de with stronger die is also common in Surinamese Dutch and among non-native speakers of Dutch.

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): /di/
  • IPA(key): /‿i/ (article only; contracted form, particularly after prepositions and conjunctions)
  • (file)

Article edit

die (definite)

  1. the (definite article)
    die manthe man
    die vrouthe woman
    die kindthe child

Pronoun edit

die

  1. this one, these; that one, those;
    Die dokter het gesê dat jy siek is. Die is die rede hoekom jy in die bed moet bly.
    The doctor said that you are sick. That is the reason why you must stay in bed.

Usage notes edit

  • The demonstrative pronoun (“this/these”, “that/those”) is usually spelt dié in order to distinguish it from the definite article.

Albanian edit

Adverb edit

die

  1. Alternative form of dje (yesterday)

Bavarian edit

Pronoun edit

die (dative)

  1. (Niederbayerisch) to you

Danish edit

Etymology edit

From Old Danish di, from Old Norse *día, from Proto-Germanic *dijōną, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁(y)- (to suck, suckle).

Cognate with Latin fellō, Sanskrit धयति (dhayati, to suck). Compare causative dægge, Gothic 𐌳𐌰𐌳𐌳𐌾𐌰𐌽 (daddjan, suckle).

The noun is derived from the verb.

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): /diːə/, [ˈd̥iːə]

Noun edit

die c

  1. breast milk, mother's milk, when sucked from the breast

Usage notes edit

Only used in the set phrase "give die".

Verb edit

die (imperative di, infinitive at die, present tense dier, past tense diede, perfect tense har diet)

  1. to suckle

References edit

Dutch edit

Etymology edit

From Middle Dutch die, a merger of Old Dutch thie, thē, thia, thiu and similar forms of the demonstrative. As in Old High German ther, der it replaced the original masculine and feminine nominative forms from Proto-Germanic *sa.

Pronunciation edit

Determiner edit

die

  1. that (masculine, feminine); referring to a thing or a person further away.
    die boom
    that tree
    die vrouw
    that woman
  2. those (plural); referring to things or people further away.
    die vensters
    those windows
  3. (Suriname, colloquial) a certain, a particular; some; this; referring to a thing or a person invisible or unknown to the audience.
    Die vrouw vraagt als iemand aardvruchten wil kopen.
    A woman is asking if anyone wants to buy root vegetables.
    Ik heb die wagen geslagen.
    I hit a car.

Inflection edit

Sg. m. Sg. f. Sg. n. Pl.
Nom. die die dat die
Gen. diens
van dien
dier
van die
(diens)
van dat
dier
van die
Dat. dien
aan dien
dier
aan die
(dien)
aan dat
dien
aan die
Acc. dien die dat die
Dutch demonstrative determiners
Masculine Feminine Neuter Plural
Proximal deze deze dit deze
Distal die die dat die
Possessive diens dier diens dier


Descendants edit

Pronoun edit

die m or f or pl

  1. (relative) who, whom, which, that
    Ik ken geen mensen die dat kunnen.
    I don't know any people who can do that.
    Oh, maar ik ken iemand die dat wel kan!
    Oh, but I know somebody who can!

Usage notes edit

A preceding comma may alter the meaning of a clause starting with a relative pronoun. Compare the following sentences:

  • Alle arbeiders die staken zullen op sancties moeten rekenen.
    All workers who are on strike should expect sanctions.
  • Alle arbeiders, die staken, zullen op sancties moeten rekenen.
    All workers, who are on strike, should expect sanctions.

In the first sentence, only the workers on strike are advised to expect sanctions. In the second sentence, the parenthetical phrase indicates that all the workers are on strike, and should all expect sanctions.

German edit

Pronunciation edit

Article edit

die (definite)

  1. nominative/accusative singular feminine of der
    die Frauthe woman
  2. nominative/accusative plural of der
    die Männerthe men

Declension edit

German definite articles
Masculine Feminine Neuter Plural
Nominative der die das die
Genitive des der des der
Dative dem der dem den
Accusative den die das die

Pronoun edit

die (relative or demonstrative)

  1. inflection of der:
    1. nominative/accusative singular feminine
    2. nominative/accusative plural
    3. (in a subordinate clause as a relative pronoun) that; which; who; whom; whose
      Ich kenne eine Frau, die das kann.I know a woman who can do that.
    4. (as a demonstrative pronoun) this one; that one; these ones; those ones; she; her; it; they; them
      die dathat one/she/they there

Usage notes edit

In a subordinate clause, die indicates a person or thing referenced in the main clause. It is used with plural or feminine singular antecedents.

Declension edit

Declension of der
masculine feminine neuter plural
nominative der die das die
genitive dessen deren
younger also: derer
dessen derer
deren
dative dem der dem denen
accusative den die das die

Anagrams edit

Hunsrik edit

Alternative forms edit

  • ti (Wiesemann spelling system)

Pronunciation edit

Article edit

die (definite)

  1. inflection of där:
    1. nominative/accusative singular feminine
    2. nominative/accusative plural all genders

Declension edit

Further reading edit

Interlingua edit

Noun edit

die (plural dies)

  1. A day.

Derived terms edit

Italian edit

Etymology edit

From Latin diēs, back-formed from the accusative diem (whose vowel was once long), from Proto-Italic *djēm, from Proto-Indo-European *dyew- (heaven, sky; to shine). Doublet of dia.

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): /ˈdi.e/
  • Rhymes: -ie
  • Hyphenation: dì‧e

Noun edit

die m (invariable)

  1. (Old Italian) Alternative form of (day)
    • c. 1316, Dante Alighieri, “Canto XXX”, in Purgatorio[4], lines 103–105; republished as Giorgio Petrocchi, editor, La Commedia secondo l'antica vulgata[5], 2nd revised edition, Florence: Casa Editrice Le Lettere, 1994:
      "Voi vigilate ne l’etterno die,
      sì che notte né sonno a voi non fura
      passo che faccia il secol per sue vie["]
      You keep watch in the eternal day, so that neither night nor sleep steals from you one step the age makes on its path."

Adverb edit

die

  1. (pharmacy) each day, a day, used in prescriptions to denote daily consumption of a drug
    1 c[om]p[ressa]/die1 tablet a day

Anagrams edit

Japanese edit

Etymology edit

Appropriation of English die for a homophone.

Pronunciation edit

Prefix edit

die(だい) (dai-

  1. (slang, humorous) Alternative spelling of (dai)

Latin edit

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

diē m or f

  1. ablative singular of diēs (day)
    Sine die.
    Without a day.

Mandarin edit

Romanization edit

die

  1. Nonstandard spelling of diē.
  2. Nonstandard spelling of dié.

Usage notes edit

  • Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.

Middle Dutch edit

Etymology 1 edit

From Old Dutch thie, thia, from Proto-Germanic *sa.

Pronunciation edit

Article edit

die

  1. the; definite article.
Inflection edit
Article
Masculine Feminine Neuter Plural
Nominative die die dat die
Accusative den die dat die
Genitive des der des der
Dative den der den den


  • Alternative nominative: de
Descendants edit

Determiner edit

die

  1. that, those
  2. who, which, that
    • 1249, Schepenbrief van Bochoute, Velzeke, eastern Flanders:
      Descepenen van bochouta quedden alle degene die dese lettren sien selen i(n) onsen here.
      The aldermen of Bochoute address all who will see this letter by our lord.
Inflection edit
Determiner
Masculine Feminine Neuter Plural
Nominative die die dat die
Accusative dien die dat die
Genitive dies dier dies dier
Dative dien dier dien dien


Descendants edit
Further reading edit

Etymology 2 edit

From Old Dutch thīo, from Proto-Germanic *þeuhą.

Noun edit

dië f or n

  1. thigh
Descendants edit
Further reading edit

Mirandese edit

Etymology edit

Inherited from Classical Latin diēs.

Noun edit

die m (plural dies)

  1. day

Antonyms edit

Norwegian Bokmål edit

Etymology edit

Probably from Danish die, from Old Danish di, from Germanic *dijana-, *dejana-

Verb edit

die (imperative di, present tense dier, passive dies, simple past and past participle dia or diet, present participle diende)

  1. to suck, suckle (of a baby on the breast)
  2. to breastfeed, nurse (of a mother with her baby)

References edit

Norwegian Nynorsk edit

Etymology edit

Probably from Danish die, from Old Danish di, from Germanic *dijana-, *dejana-

Verb edit

die (present tense diar, past tense dia, past participle dia, passive infinitive diast, present participle diande, imperative die/di)

  1. to suck, suckle (of a baby on the breast)
  2. to breastfeed, nurse (of a mother with her baby)

Alternative forms edit

References edit

Pennsylvania German edit

Etymology edit

From Middle High German and Old High German diu, from Proto-Germanic *sa. Compare German die.

Article edit

die (definite)

  1. nominative/accusative singular feminine of der
  2. nominative/accusative plural of der

Declension edit

Pennsylvania German definite articles
Masculine Feminine Neuter Plural
Nominative der die es die
Dative dem or em der dem or em de
Accusative der or den die es die

Romanian edit

Interjection edit

die

  1. Alternative form of di

Saterland Frisian edit

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): /di/
  • Hyphenation: die
  • Rhymes: -i

Etymology 1 edit

From Old Frisian thī, from Proto-West Germanic *þa, from Proto-Germanic *sa. Cognates include West Frisian de and German der.

Article edit

die (unstressed de, oblique dän, feminine ju, neuter dät, plural do)

  1. the

Etymology 2 edit

From Old Frisian thī, from Proto-West Germanic *þiʀ, from Proto-Germanic *þiz. Cognates include West Frisian dy and German dir.

Pronoun edit

die

  1. thyself, yourself
See also edit

Pronoun edit

die

  1. oblique of du; thee, you
See also edit

References edit

  • Marron C. Fort (2015), “die”, in Saterfriesisches Wörterbuch mit einer phonologischen und grammatischen Übersicht, Buske, →ISBN

Teanu edit

Etymology edit

From Proto-Oceanic *suʀi (fishbone, thorn, splinter), from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *zuʀi, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *duʀi, from Proto-Austronesian *duʀi (thorn).

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

die

  1. bone

References edit

Yola edit

Alternative forms edit

Etymology edit

From Middle English day, from Old English dæġ, from Proto-West Germanic *dag.

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

die (plural dais or daies or daiez)

  1. day
    • 1867, GLOSSARY OF THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, page 52:
      Leiough ut ee die.
      Idle out the day.
    • 1867, “CASTEALE CUDDE'S LAMENTATION”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 1, page 102:
      Dhicka die fan ich want to a mile.
      That day when I went to the mill.
    • 1867, “ABOUT AN OLD SOW GOING TO BE KILLED”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 1, page 106:
      Mot earch oan to aar die. Ich mosth kotch a bat.
      But every one to his day. I must catch the bat.
    • 1867, “SONG”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 3, page 108:
      Shoo zent him o' die.
      She sent him one day.
    • 1867, “SONG”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 6, page 108:
      Shoo zent him anoor die a gozleen to keep;
      She sent him another day the goslings to keep;

Derived terms edit

References edit

  • Jacob Poole (1867), William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, page 35