disintegrate

American  

[dis-in-tuh-greyt] / dɪsˈɪn təˌgreɪt /

verb (used without object)

disintegrated, disintegrating

1. to separate into parts or lose intactness or solidness; break up; deteriorate.

   The old book is gradually disintegrating with age.

2. Physics.

   1. to decay.

   2. (of a nucleus) to change into one or more different nuclei after being bombarded by high-energy particles, as alpha particles or gamma rays.

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verb (used with object)

disintegrated, disintegrating

1. to reduce to particles, fragments, or parts; break up or destroy the cohesion of.

   Rocks are disintegrated by frost and rain.

disintegrate British  

/ dɪsˈɪntɪˌɡreɪt /

verb

1. to break or be broken into fragments or constituent parts; shatter

2. to lose or cause to lose cohesion or unity

3. (intr) to lose judgment or control; deteriorate

4. physics

   1. to induce or undergo nuclear fission, as by bombardment with fast particles

   2. another word for decay

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Related Words

See decay.

Other Word Forms

• disintegrable
  adjective
• disintegration
  noun
• disintegrative
  adjective
• disintegrator
  noun
• disintegratory
  adjective
• nondisintegrating
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of disintegrate

First recorded in 1790–1800; dis- ¹ + integrate

Explanation

Soak your tooth in a cup of soda for long enough and it will disintegrate, or break apart from decay. The word disintegrate comes from a combination of the prefix dis- meaning "do the opposite of" and the Latin integrare meaning "to make whole." When something disintegrates, it does the opposite of become whole; it falls apart. Objects can either disintegrate over time — like a tooth soaking in a cup of soda, or instantaneously — like a building disintegrating into dust from an explosion.

Example Sentences

The skins contain natural oils, and garments not kept in a temperature-controlled environment -- ideally off-season in cold vaults -- can dry out and disintegrate.

From Barron's • Apr. 24, 2026

Plastic wipes don't disintegrate when flushed down the toilet, so when oil and fat congeal on them, so-called fatbergs form in sewers, which water companies say cost them £200m a year to clear.

From BBC • Nov. 17, 2025

This kind of "odd" solid can even disintegrate on its own.

From Science Daily • Oct. 21, 2025

Were you to cook Swiss chard fully intact, without separating the stems and leaves, the leaf would disintegrate by the time the stems were tender.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 3, 2025

I waited for him to disintegrate, the way monsters usually do.

From "The Battle of the Labyrinth" by Rick Riordan

Related Words

• break down
• break up
• come apart
• crumble
• decay
• decompose
• degenerate
• descend
• disband
• dismantle
• rot
• sever
• shatter
• sink
• splinter
• wash out
• wither