quail

Definition

To waste away; to fade, to wither.

Etymology

From Middle English quaylen, from Middle Dutch queilen, quēlen, from Old Dutch *quelan, from Proto-West Germanic *kwelan, from Proto-Germanic *kwelaną (“to suffer”). Doublet of queal.

Example Sentences

• "Death dvvels vvithin vs, and if gentle Peace / Diſcend not ſoone, our ſorrovves to ſurceaſe, / Latium (alreadie quaild) vvill be deſtroyd."
• "But when he meant to quaile and shake the Orbe, / He was as ratling Thunder."
• "To tell the truth the prospect rather quailed him – wandering about in the gloomy corridors of a nunnery."