concentrate

[ kon-suhn-treyt ]
See synonyms for concentrate on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object),con·cen·trat·ed, con·cen·trat·ing.
  1. to bring or draw to a common center or point of union; converge; direct toward one point; focus: to concentrate one's attention on a problem; to concentrate the rays of the sun with a lens.

  2. to put or bring into a single place, group, etc.: The nation's wealth had been concentrated in a few families.

  1. to intensify; make denser, stronger, or purer, especially by the removal or reduction of liquid: to concentrate fruit juice; to concentrate a sauce by boiling it down.

  2. Mining. to separate (metal or ore) from rock, sand, etc., so as to improve the quality of the valuable portion.

verb (used without object),con·cen·trat·ed, con·cen·trat·ing.
  1. to bring all efforts, faculties, activities, etc., to bear on one thing or activity (often followed by on or upon): to concentrate on solving a problem.

  2. to come to or toward a common center; converge; collect: The population concentrated in one part of the city.

  1. to become more intense, stronger, or purer.

noun
  1. a concentrated form of something; a product of concentration: a juice concentrate.

Origin of concentrate

1
1630–40; concentr(ic) + -ate2; compare French concentrer,Italian concentrare

synonym study For concentrate

1. See contract.

Opposites for concentrate

Other words from concentrate

  • con·cen·tra·tive [kon-suhn-trey-tiv, kuhn-sen-truh-], /ˈkɒn sənˌtreɪ tɪv, kənˈsɛn trə-/, adjective
  • con·cen·tra·tive·ness, noun
  • con·cen·tra·tor, noun
  • non·con·cen·tra·tive, adjective
  • non·con·cen·tra·tive·ness, noun
  • o·ver·con·cen·trate, verb, o·ver·con·cen·trat·ed, o·ver·con·cen·trat·ing.
  • pre·con·cen·trate, noun, verb, pre·con·cen·trat·ed, pre·con·cen·trat·ing.
  • re·con·cen·trate, verb, re·con·cen·trat·ed, re·con·cen·trat·ing.
  • un·con·cen·tra·tive, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use concentrate in a sentence

  • In the television screen, Craven leaped from his chair, was staring with Stutsman at the place where the concentrator had stood.

    Empire | Clifford Donald Simak
  • A concentrator capable of handling 4,000 tons of ore per day is nearing completion.

    An African Adventure | Isaac F. Marcosson
  • This company afterwards erected the first concentrator in Idaho, at Wardner.

    Then and Now | Robert Vaughn
  • A few minutes ago I decided to reverse my concentrator and aim at a higher goal.

    'Charge It' | Irving Bacheller
  • Along in the early 70s he erected the first concentrator in the Rocky mountains284 on the Rumley mine.

    Then and Now | Robert Vaughn

British Dictionary definitions for concentrate

concentrate

/ (ˈkɒnsənˌtreɪt) /


verb
  1. to come or cause to come to a single purpose or aim: to concentrate one's hopes on winning

  2. to make or become denser or purer by the removal of certain elements, esp the solvent of a solution

  1. (tr) to remove rock or sand from (an ore) to make it purer

  2. (intr often foll by on) to bring one's faculties to bear (on); think intensely (about)

noun
  1. a concentrated material or solution: tomato concentrate

Origin of concentrate

1
C17: back formation from concentration, ultimately from Latin com- same + centrum centre

Derived forms of concentrate

  • concentrator, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012