die and dye are homophones: they are pronounced identically and spelled differently, which is why they are so often swapped. die means “pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life”. dye means “a usually soluble substance for staining or coloring e.g. fabrics or hair”. die is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/ˈdaɪ/
1.v.pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
“She died from cancer”
2.v.suffer or face the pain of death
“Martyrs may die every day for their faith”
3.v.be brought to or as if to the point of death by an intense emotion such as embarrassment, amusement, or shame
“I was dying with embarrassment when my little lie was discovered”
| die | dye | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈdaɪ/ | /ˈdaɪ/ |
| Said | dahy | dahy |
| Syllables | 1 | 1 |
| Letters | 3 | 3 |
| Parts of speech | verb, noun | noun, verb |
| Senses | 14 | 2 |
| How common | Core | Familiar |
| Synonyms | decease, perish, go | dyestuff |
/ˈdaɪ/
1.n.a usually soluble substance for staining or coloring e.g. fabrics or hair
2.v.color with dye
“Please dye these shoes”