shrivel up

verb

To become completely shriveled; to completely dry up and become wrinkled.

Similar
shrivelshrinkwither
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Meanings

verbshrivel up (third-person singular simple present shrivels up, present participle (US) shriveling up or (UK) shrivelling up, simple past and past participle (US) shriveled up or (UK) shrivelled up)

present singular third person shrivels up · US participle present shriveling up · UK participle present shrivelling up · US participle past shriveled up · US past shriveled up · UK participle past shrivelled up · UK past shrivelled up

  1. To become completely shriveled; to completely dry up and become wrinkled.

    "Look! - look! - look! she's shrivelling up! she's turning into a monkey!" and down he fell upon the ground, foaming and gnashing in a fit.

    1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC

Synonyms & antonyms

verbwither, as with a loss of moisture

Similar
shrivelshrinkwither
Broader
decreasediminishlessen
Also see
seasonshrinkshrivelwither

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Translations

Italian disidratarsi, seccarsi
  • disidratarsito become completely dry
  • seccarsito become completely dry
Polish usychać, uschnąć
  • usychaćto become completely dry
  • uschnąćto become completely dry
  • wysychaćto become completely dry
  • wyschnąćto become completely dry
  • wysuszać sięto become completely dry
  • wysuszyć sięto become completely dry
Cite this entry
APA

shrivel up. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shrivel%20up

MLA

“shrivel up.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shrivel%20up. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “shrivel up,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shrivel%20up.

Source: shrivel up on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.