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Wilt vs Decay - What's the difference?

wilt | decay |

In intransitive terms the difference between wilt and decay

is that wilt is to fatigue; to lose strength while decay is to deteriorate, to get worse, to lose strength or health, to decline in quality.

In transitive terms the difference between wilt and decay

is that wilt is to cause to fatigue; to exhaust while decay is to cause to rot or deteriorate.

wilt

English

Etymology 1

Recorded since 1691, probably an alteration of welk, itself from (etyl) welken, presumed from (etyl) (preserved in modern inchoative verwelken) or (etyl) .

Verb

(en verb)
  • To droop or become limp and flaccid (as a dying leaf or flower).
  • To fatigue; to lose strength.
  • * {{quote-news
  • , year=2011 , date=September 27 , author=Alistair Magowan , title=Bayern Munich 2 - 0 Man City , work=BBC Sport citation , passage=Not only were Jupp Heynckes' team pacey in attack but they were relentless in their pursuit of the ball once they had lost it, and as the game wore on they merely increased their dominance as City wilted in the Allianz Arena.}}
  • To cause to droop or become limp and flaccid (as a flower).
  • To cause to fatigue; to exhaust.
  • Noun

    (en noun)
  • The act of wilting or the state of being wilted.
  • Any of various plant diseases characterized by wilting.
  • Etymology 2

    Verb

    (head)
  • * Bible, Psalms
  • If thou triest my heart, if thou visitest me by night, if thou testest me, thou wilt find no wickedness in me.
    English auxiliary verb forms English ergative verbs English irregular second-person singular forms ----

    decay

    English

    (wikipedia decay)

    Noun

  • The process or result of being gradually decomposed.
  • * 1895 , H. G. Wells, The Time Machine Chapter X
  • I fancied at first the stuff was paraffin wax, and smashed the jar accordingly. But the odor of camphor was unmistakable. It struck me as singularly odd, that among the universal decay , this volatile substance had chanced to survive, perhaps through many thousand years.
  • A deterioration of condition.
  • Derived terms

    * bacterial decay * decayability * decayable * decayer * orbital decay * particle decay * radioactive decay

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To deteriorate, to get worse, to lose strength or health, to decline in quality.
  • The pair loved to take pictures in the decaying hospital on forty-third street.
  • # (intransitive, electronics, of storage media or the data on them) To undergo , that is, gradual degradation.
  • # (intransitive, computing, of software) To undergo , that is, to fail to be updated in a changing environment,so as to eventually become legacy or obsolete.
  • # (intransitive, physics, of a satellite's orbit) To undergo prolonged reduction in altitude (above the orbited body).
  • 2009 , Francis Lyall, Paul B. Larsen, Space Law: A Treatise , page 120:
  • Damaged on lift-off, Skylab was left in orbit until its orbit decayed .
  • (of organic material) To rot, to go bad.
  • The cat's body decayed rapidly.
  • (intransitive, transitive, physics, chemistry, of an unstable atom) To change by undergoing fission, by emitting radiation, or by capturing or losing one or more electrons.
  • * 2005 , Encyclopedia of Earth Science (edited by Timothy M. Kusky; ISBN 0-8160-4973-4), page 349:
  • Uranium decays to radium through a long series of steps with a cumulative half-life of 4.4 billion years.
  • (intransitive, transitive, physics, of a quantum system) To undergo , that is, to relax to a less excited state, usually by emitting a photon or phonon.
  • (aviation)
  • To cause to rot or deteriorate.
  • The extreme humidity decayed the wooden sculptures in the museum's collection in a matter of years.
  • * Shakespeare
  • Infirmity, that decays the wise.