dying
/ˈdaɪɪŋ/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈdaɪɪŋ/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈdī-iŋ/ (ame, mw) · /ˈdaɪ.ɪŋ/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈdaɪ.ɪŋ/ (ame, ipa)
dying — adjective
- dyingpositive
- more dyingcomparative
- most dyingsuperlative
1. describing a person whose body is shutting down and whose life is expected to en
describing a person whose body is shutting down and whose life is expected to end soon, usually because of illness or old age.
The dying patient asked the night-shift nurse to call his daughter.
dying + noun referring to a person
Aarav's dying grandmother held his hand and smiled for the last time.
possessive + dying + family noun
A special hospice unit in Taipei cares for dying children and their families.
The camp doctor did everything she could to ease the pain of the dying soldiers.
Kenji visited his dying uncle at the hospital every afternoon.
- terminally ill
more medical and precise; suggests an incurable condition that will end in death
- at death's door
informal and dramatic; suggests being extremely close to death
- fading
gentler, often used of elderly people whose strength is slowly leaving them
- healthy
in good physical condition, not at risk of dying
- recovering
getting better after an illness rather than getting worse
文法句型
dying + noun
be dying
用法筆記
The fixed expression 'dying to do something' means wanting very badly to do it (e.g. 'Cole was dying to try the new roller coaster'). This is an informal use, not related to actual death.
常見錯誤
2. describing something such as a custom, skill, business, or language that is grad
describing something such as a custom, skill, business, or language that is gradually disappearing because fewer people practise, use, or support it.
Hand-weaving is a dying craft that fewer young people learn each year.
dying + craft / tradition / art form
The once-busy fishing village has become a dying community as young adults leave for cities.
Aylin's father runs a dying business — a small bookshop that cannot compete with online stores.
The dying tradition of storytelling around the fire has nearly disappeared from the village.
Coal mining is a dying industry in many parts of Europe.
- vanishing
more visual; emphasises the complete disappearance
- declining
more neutral and statistical; focuses on the measurable reduction
- disappearing
more direct; may be used for both physical and abstract things
文法句型
dying + tradition/industry/craft/language
常見錯誤
3. happening at the exact time a person passes away, or directly connected to that
happening at the exact time a person passes away, or directly connected to that final moment — such as a last request, final words, or the precise instant of death.
The dying wish of Eve's grandfather was for the whole family to stay together.
dying wish — a last request before death
A priest arrived at the hospital to hear the dying man's final confession.
Bilal recorded his mother's dying words so the family would never forget them.
The night-shift nurse held the dying woman's hand and promised to look after her cat.
文法句型
dying + wish/words/breath/moment
用法筆記
Common in set phrases: 'dying wish' (a final request), 'dying words' (last statements), 'dying breath' (the very last moment of life). These are often used in storytelling or historical accounts.
4. describing the final stretch of someone's existence; found almost exclusively in
describing the final stretch of someone's existence; found almost exclusively in the set phrase 'to one's dying day', meaning for the remainder of that person's years until death.
Talia swore to her dying day that she saw a ghost in the old house.
to + possessive + dying day (fixed expression)
The old fisherman kept the photograph beside his bed to his dying day.
Andrew's mother believed to her dying day that he would come back home.
Paloma never revealed the secret to her dying day, even to her closest friend.
- to the end of one's life
more literal and less idiomatic; lacks the emotional weight of 'dying day'
- until one's last breath
more dramatic and literary
文法句型
to + possessive + dying day
用法筆記
This sense is almost entirely restricted to the phrase 'to one's dying day'. It emphasises that a person held a belief, feeling, or memory continuously until the moment of death. Distinguish from sense 3 (DEATHBED), which describes events at the deathbed itself rather than a lifelong duration.
5. occurring in the closing moments of a sports competition, formal meeting, or oth
occurring in the closing moments of a sports competition, formal meeting, or other timed event, often while the result is not yet settled.
Ramón scored the winning goal in the dying minutes of the match.
dying minutes of + event
The home team fought back in the dying seconds of the game.
Adaeze's speech in the dying moments of the debate changed everyone's opinion.
A surprise decision came in the dying hours of the parliament's last session.
The star player injured his ankle in the dying minutes of the first half.
- opening
at the start of an event, not the end
文法句型
dying + minutes/seconds/moments/hours + of + event
用法筆記
This sense is most common in British English sports commentary ('the dying minutes') and news reporting. It always modifies a time noun (minutes, seconds, moments, hours, days) followed by 'of' and the event name.
常見錯誤
dying — noun
1. people as a group who are in the final stage of a terminal illness and are expec
people as a group who are in the final stage of a terminal illness and are expected to die soon, considered collectively as a social or medical category.
The hospital has a special ward for the dying and their families.
the + dying (collective noun group)
A volunteer group in Kaohsiung offers companionship to the dying in their final weeks.
The chaplain spent most of his time comforting the dying in the cancer ward.
New hospice policies aim to improve the quality of life for the dying.
The dying are often more concerned with peace than with pain relief.
- the terminally ill
more clinical; specifically refers to those with incurable diseases
- the terminally ill patients
more specific; refers to patients in a medical setting
- the living
all people who are alive, in contrast to those close to death
文法句型
the dying + plural verb
用法筆記
Always used with 'the' as a collective noun, like 'the elderly' or 'the poor'. It treats dying people as a group and is found most often in medical, ethical, or social-care writing. For referring to one person, use 'a dying patient' (adjective sense 1) or 'a terminally ill person'.