defuse
Americanverb (used with object)
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to remove the fuze from (a bomb, mine, etc.).
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to make less dangerous, tense, or embarrassing.
to defuse a potentially ugly situation.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to remove the triggering device of (a bomb, etc)
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to remove the cause of tension from (a crisis, etc)
Commonly Confused
See diffuse
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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defusesimple
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defusessimple
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have defusedperfect
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has defusedperfect
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are defusingprogressive
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am defusingprogressive
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is defusingprogressive
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have been defusingperfect progressive
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has been defusingperfect progressive
Past
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defusedsimple
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had defusedperfect
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was defusingprogressive
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were defusingprogressive
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had been defusingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of defuse
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As our Defuse Nuclear War team says, "Grassroots activism will be essential to pressure members of Congress to publicly acknowledge the dangers of nuclear war and strongly advocate specific steps for reducing them."
From Salon • Oct. 12, 2022
The Defuse Nuclear War campaign, which is coordinating those picket lines, has identified key needed actions.
From Salon • Oct. 12, 2022
The proposal was made in response to DARPA’s Project Defuse, aimed at addressing what the agency called the threat posed by bat-borne coronaviruses.
From Washington Times • Jan. 12, 2022
A 2011 research paper in the journal of Social Psychological and Personality Science sums it up in the title: Do Gooder Derogation: Disparaging Morally Motivated Minorities to Defuse Anticipated Reproach.
From The Guardian • Jan. 15, 2017
"That defeats the purpose of working longer to keep your capital invested and could throw you into a higher tax bracket," says Ed Slott, author of The Retirement Savings Timebomb and How to Defuse It.
From Time Magazine Archive
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
