Fade, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Faded; p. pr. & vb. n. Fading.]
Etymology: [OE. faden, vaden, prob. fr. fade, a.; cf. Prov. D. vadden to fade, wither, vaddigh languid, torpid. Cf. Fade, a., Vade.]
1. To become fade; to grow weak; to lose strength; to decay; to perish gradually; to wither, as a plant. The earth mourneth and fadeth away. Is. xxiv. 4.
2. To lose freshness, color, or brightness; to become faint in hue or tint; hence, to be wanting in color. "Flowers that never fade." Milton.
3. To sink away; to disappear gradually; to grow dim; to vanish. The stars shall fade away. Addison He makes a swanlike end, Fading in music. Shak.
2 other Webster entries under this spelling
Fade a.
Weak; insipid; tasteless; commonplace. [R.] "Passages that are somewhat fade." Jeffrey. His masculine taste gave him a sense of something fade and ludicrous. De Quincey.
Fade, v. t.
To cause to wither; to deprive of freshness or vigor; to wear away. No winter could his laurels fade. Dryden.
Shades of meaning
Fernald has no entry of its own for fade; he lists it under die.
He lists it without comment; the entries above explain its neighbors.