1
general::
Lose energy and vigor, become enfeebled and weak, as in She was wasting away before our eyes. [Late 1300s]
American Heritage Idioms
2
general::
Phrase(s): waste something away
to use something up wastefully; to dissipate something. • He wasted all his money away and had to live in poverty. • They wasted away everything and regretted it later., Phrase(s): waste away
to wither or dwindle away. • Our money just seemed to waste away. • As she grew older, she just sort of wasted away.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs