: 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
Michael Irving, New Atlas, 8 Aug. 2024
Sudarshan and Frank compared death rates in the years following the die-offs between regions that had previously been home to vulture populations and those that hadn’t, finding that people started dying at higher rates in areas where the birds had lived.
—Dylan Scott, Vox, 2 Aug. 2024
Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 8 July 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, 17 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for die-off 
Noun
This toxin has been linked to mass fish die-offs whenever golden algae blooms in a waterway.
—Michael Irving, New Atlas, 8 Aug. 2024
Sudarshan and Frank compared death rates in the years following the die-offs between regions that had previously been home to vulture populations and those that hadn’t, finding that people started dying at higher rates in areas where the birds had lived.
—Dylan Scott, Vox, 2 Aug. 2024
Verb
But at the end of the season, when the 1,000 or so acres of hydrilla in the lower river die off and drift away, the decomposition process sucks oxygen from the water.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 8 July 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, 17 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for die-off
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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“Die-off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/die-off. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.
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