waste away
To slowly get weaker and smaller, often because of illness or not eating enough.
Meanings
To become progressively thinner and weaker, especially because of illness or lack of food.
"After months in hospital, he had wasted away to almost nothing."
"He just lay in bed and wasted away."
— General idiomatic usage; widely attested in literary fiction (e.g., Charles Dickens, various works)
To spend one's life or time unproductively, allowing one's talents or potential to go unused.
"She felt like she was wasting away in a job that didn't challenge her."
Used in the phrase 'wasting away' to describe the progressive deterioration of something abstract.
"Without investment, the once-great city was wasting away."
Most often used to describe physical decline due to illness, starvation, or grief. Can also be used figuratively to describe the decline of something abstract, like talent or opportunity. Common in both British and American English.
Commonly used with
Forms
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