perish
UK[ˈper.ɪʃ]US[ˈper.ɪʃ]
v
(of a person, animal, or plant) to die, especially in a sudden or violent way.
v
(of a material object) to decay or be destroyed completely.
v
to be lost or forgotten; to cease to exist.
Etymology
the verb 'perish' entered english in the 13th century via old french 'perir' or 'periss-', meaning 'to die, be lost, or decay'. its ultimate source is the latin verb 'perire', which is a compound of 'per-' (meaning 'through, completely, to destruction') and 'ire' (meaning 'to go'). the literal sense is thus 'to go through to the end' or 'to go completely', which evolved into the concepts of coming to an end, being destroyed, or dying. this latin root passed through the romance languages, retaining its core meaning of destruction and death, before being adopted into middle english, where it has remained with a stable semantic focus on death, decay, and cessation.
Analysis
the word is a simplex form; it cannot be meaningfully segmented into smaller morphemes based on its current english spelling.
Examples
hundreds of people perished in the earthquake.
without a constant supply of water, these plants will quickly perish.
ancient civilizations have perished, leaving only ruins behind.