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condense

[kuh n-dens]
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verb (used with object), con·densed, con·dens·ing.
  1. to make more dense or compact; reduce the volume or extent of; concentrate.
  2. to reduce to a shorter form; abridge: Condense your answer into a few words.
  3. to reduce to another and denser form, as a gas or vapor to a liquid or solid state.
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verb (used without object), con·densed, con·dens·ing.
  1. to become denser or more compact or concentrated.
  2. to reduce a book, speech, statement, or the like, to a shorter form.
  3. to become liquid or solid, as a gas or vapor: The steam condensed into droplets.
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Origin of condense

1475–85; < Middle French condenser < Latin condēnsāre, equivalent to con- con- + dēnsāre to thicken, verbal derivative of dēnsus dense
Related formso·ver·con·dense, verb, o·ver·con·densed, o·ver·con·dens·ing.pre·con·dense, verb, pre·con·densed, pre·con·dens·ing.re·con·dense, verb, re·con·densed, re·con·dens·ing.un·con·dens·ing, adjective

Synonyms

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1. compress, consolidate. 2. digest, epitomize, abstract, abbreviate.

Synonym study

2. See contract.

Antonyms

1. expand.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for condenses

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • It cools and still cools and condenses, but still fiercely glows.

    A Dish Of Orts

    George MacDonald

  • Then the water vapor in it condenses into droplets of water, and these form a cloud.

    Common Science

    Carleton W. Washburne

  • As the vapor rises from the mixture and goes into the worm, it cools and condenses.

    Common Science

    Carleton W. Washburne

  • They will not understand a man who condenses his thoughts into an octavo.

    Jane Austen, Her Life and Letters

    William Austen-Leigh and Richard Arthur Austen-Leigh

  • He condenses their volume of steam into a drop of cold water in a moment.

    Crotchet Castle

    Thomas Love Peacock

British Dictionary definitions for condenses

condense

verb
  1. (tr) to increase the density of; compress
  2. to reduce or be reduced in volume or size; make or become more compact
  3. to change or cause to change from a gaseous to a liquid or solid state
  4. chem to undergo or cause to undergo condensation
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Derived Formscondensable or condensible, adjectivecondensability or condensibility, noun

Word Origin

C15: from Latin condēnsāre, from dēnsāre to make thick, from dēnsus dense
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

Word Origin and History for condenses

condense

v.

early 15c., from Middle French condenser (14c.) or directly from Latin condensare "to make dense," from com-, intensive prefix (see com-), + densare "make thick," from densus "dense, thick, crowded," a word used of crowds, darkness, clouds, etc. (see dense).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper