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adsorb

[ ad-sawrb, -zawrb ]
/ ædˈsɔrb, -ˈzɔrb /
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verb (used with object) Physical Chemistry.
to gather (a gas, liquid, or dissolved substance) on a surface in a condensed layer: Charcoal will adsorb gases.
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Origin of adsorb

First recorded in 1880–85; ad- + (ab)sorb

OTHER WORDS FROM adsorb

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH adsorb

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

How to use adsorb in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for adsorb

adsorb
/ (ədˈsɔːb, -ˈzɔːb) /

verb
to undergo or cause to undergo a process in which a substance, usually a gas, accumulates on the surface of a solid forming a thin film, often only one molecule thickto adsorb hydrogen on nickel; oxygen adsorbs on tungsten Compare absorb (def. 8)

Derived forms of adsorb

adsorbable, adjectiveadsorbability, nounadsorption, noun

Word Origin for adsorb

C19: ad- + -sorb as in absorb
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
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