condensation

American  

[kon-den-sey-shuhn, -duhn-] / ˌkɒn dɛnˈseɪ ʃən, -dən- /

noun

1. the act of condensing; the state of being condensed. condensed.

2. the result of being made more compact or dense.

3. reduction of a book, speech, statement, or the like, to a shorter or terser form; abridgment.

4. a condensed condensed form.

   Did you read the whole book or just a condensation?

5. a condensed condensed mass.

6. (in nontechnical usage) condensate.

7. the act or process of reducing a gas or vapor to a liquid or solid form.

8. Chemistry. a reaction between two or more organic molecules leading to the formation of a larger molecule and the elimination of a simple molecule such as water or alcohol.

9. Meteorology. the process by which atmospheric water vapor liquefies to form fog, clouds, or the like, or solidifies to form snow or hail.

10. Psychoanalysis. the representation of two or more ideas, memories, feelings, or impulses by one word or image, as in a person's humor, accidental slips, or dreams.

11. Physics. the relative amount by which the density of an elastic medium varies from its average value as a sound wave passes through it.

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condensation British  

/ ˌkɒndɛnˈseɪʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of condensing, or the state of being condensed

2. anything that has condensed from a vapour, esp on a window

3. chem a type of reaction in which two organic molecules combine to form a larger molecule as well as a simple molecule such as water, methanol, etc

4. anything that has been shortened, esp an abridged version of a book

5. psychoanal

   1. the fusion of two or more ideas, etc, into one symbol, occurring esp in dreams

   2. the reduction of many experiences into one word or action, as in a phobia

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condensation Scientific  

/ kŏn′dən-sā′shən /

1. The change of a gas or vapor to a liquid, either by cooling or by being subjected to increased pressure. When water vapor cools in the atmosphere, for example, it condenses into tiny drops of water, which form clouds.

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Other Word Forms

• condensational adjective
• condensative adjective
• noncondensation noun
• overcondensation noun
• precondensation noun
• recondensation noun
• subcondensation noun
• uncondensational adjective

Etymology

Origin of condensation

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Late Latin condēnsātiōn-, stem of condēnsātiō; equivalent to condensate + -ion

Explanation

If your cold glass of lemonade seems to be sweating in the heat, it's just the condensation, the little drops of water that form in the humid air. Condensation happens when a gas turns into a liquid. That lemonade feels wet in your hand because of the condensation on the glass. As the heated air reaches the cold water, the surface of that water begins to evaporate, but it turns back to liquid. Clouds are caused by condensation as well. Condensation can also describe the act of making something shorter, like the condensation of an unabridged dictionary to one that is geared to elementary school students.

Example Sentences

One of the quiet tragedies of the potluck is that perfectly good food often remains trapped in its travel container — lids half removed, plastic corners fogged with condensation.

From Salon • Mar. 15, 2026

Their experiments showed that spermine causes harmful proteins to come together and form clumps through biomolecular condensation.

From Science Daily • Nov. 27, 2025

Cloud seeding speeds up the condensation of moisture in clouds to create rain.

From BBC • Oct. 29, 2025

But Israeli water condensation and waste management technology are saving lives, turning haters in Syria into new allies.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 21, 2025

It must have been there for a long time, because the crystal glass of ice water beside the silver dome was speckled with thick beads of condensation.

From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Related Words

• contraction