atomization
Americannoun
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the act or process of splitting into smaller parts, sections, groups, etc.; fragmentation or disintegration.
The atomization of society into isolated individuals, who find nothing above them but the all-powerful state, is largely a modern phenomenon.
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the act or process of reducing a substance to fine particles or spray.
The finer the atomization of the material, the smoother the surface produced when spraying.
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the act or process of reducing something to atoms.
In atomization by flame, oxygen is used as an oxidant because breaking molecules down to atoms is easier with more heat.
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the act of destroying a target by bombing, especially with an atomic bomb.
The atomization of Hiroshima inflicted death, mutilation, and irreparable loss on millions of men, women, and children.
Etymology
Origin of atomization
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.
The Eye Spa machine uses a “cold mist atomization process,” Xie said, “that disperses micro-particles of moisture combined with soothing essential oils.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 6, 2026
Perhaps that atomization is why large communal events are still so popular.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 15, 2026
Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s documentation of Stalinism strikes the same note: the elimination of a private existence away from politics, with the regime constantly forcing itself upon one’s attention, feeding each individual’s growing atomization and learned helplessness.
From Salon • May 24, 2025
“Part of the atomization of society is we’re not coordinated in our response to crime,” Mr. Kilpatrick said.
From Washington Times • Jul. 25, 2023
Knowing that the appearance of electricity depends on a process of atomization of some sort, we shall expect that where electricity becomes freely observable, it will yield phenomena of an atomistic kind.
From Man or Matter by Lehrs, Ernst
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.
