condense

American  

[kuhn-dens] / kənˈdɛns /

verb (used with object)

• condenses,
  present (3rd person singular)
• condensed,
  past participle,  past
• condensing
  present participle

1. to make more dense or compact; reduce the volume or extent of; concentrate.

   Synonyms:

   consolidate, compress

   Antonyms:

   expand

2. to reduce to a shorter form; abridge.

   Condense your answer into a few words.

   Synonyms:

   abbreviate, abstract, epitomize, digest

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)

• condenses,
  present (3rd person singular)
• condensed,
  past participle,  past
• condensing
  present participle

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.

condense British  

/ kənˈdɛns /

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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Synonym Usage

See contract.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• condensability
  noun
• overcondense
  verb
• precondense
  verb
• recondense
  verb
• condensable
  adjective
• uncondensing
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• condensing
  present
• condensed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• condense
  simple
• condenses
  simple
• have condensed
  perfect
• has condensed
  perfect
• am condensing
  progressive
• are condensing
  progressive
• is condensing
  progressive
• have been condensing
  perfect progressive
• has been condensing
  perfect progressive

Past

• condensed
  simple
• had condensed
  perfect
• was condensing
  progressive
• were condensing
  progressive
• had been condensing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will condense
  simple
• will have condensed
  perfect
• will be condensing
  progressive
• will have been condensing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of condense

First recorded in 1475–85; from Middle French condenser, from Latin condēnsāre, from con- con- + dēnsāre “to thicken,” verb derivative of dēnsus dense

Explanation

When you condense something, you cut it down and trim it. You may love every word of your 1000-page novel, but you'll have to condense the plot into a 2-page summary for your editor. When you condense something, you make it smaller and more compact. If you condense your wardrobe, you get rid things and keep only what you wear most. When a gas or vapor turns to liquid, it condenses. When you take a long, hot shower, the steam condenses in your bathroom, your mirror clouds up, and everything gets damp. Condense comes from Latin con-, “completely” and densus, “thick, dense."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

condense condenses condensed condensing

The ice-cream maker will eventually need to condense and centralize all of the AI agents created inside the company, though it’s aiming not to disrupt employee creativity in the process, Friedlander said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026

Teams would think, if you can condense play in their areas, you can control them - and if it goes over to another part of the pitch, you can cope with it.

From BBC ● Feb. 22, 2026

"It can't create rain where there is no moisture in the air, but it just 'forces' some of the water to condense in one location rather than another," he told AFP.

From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2025

The researchers also discovered that these DNA loops actually strengthen as chromosomes condense in preparation for division.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2025

If it got too moist, we were afraid that the moisture would condense on the coldest equipment, just as a pitcher of ice tea on a hot summer day gets dripping wet on the outside.

From "Flying to the Moon: An Astronaut's Story" by Michael Collins

Gilbert said they have been harvesting at 03:00 BST to bring the moisture up, as at that time of day it's cooler and water condenses.

From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026

“Management sees a broader market” once the company condenses its bulky, rack-mounted systems into smaller chips in a few years, he wrote.

From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026

Tule fog forms when heat escapes from the ground on clear, calm nights, and moisture in the air condenses into a low-lying mist.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 29, 2026

They found that this process occurs through phase separation, a phenomenon similar to oil droplets forming in water, and they believe it reflects how chromatin condenses inside living cells.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 8, 2025

Every thought I have condenses into that heartbeat, moving at the same rhythm.

From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth

The following excerpt of their conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

Readers of Mr. Stannard’s biography will find much of the material in “Like a Cat Loves a Bird” familiar, albeit presented in a highly condensed form.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

After Netflix greenlit a two-hour finale instead, Oseman elected to zero in on her protagonists — not unlike her comics — rather than give each character their own, heavily condensed arc.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

Skyrmions were first proposed in particle and nuclear physics before later becoming an important area of study in condensed matter physics and magnetic materials.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 13, 2026

“You will drink fresh milk from a bottle. No more stunted tins of condensed milk, no more homemade soybean milk,” I said.

From "Purple Hibiscus" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

"What this study suggests is that we may be able to offer those same patients a path to meaningful relief in less than one week by condensing 25 TMS treatments over just five days."

From Science Daily ● Feb. 25, 2026

With his breath condensing in clouds in temperatures double figures below zero, a foreman summed the attitude that is common here, when I asked him why Russia was attacking them.

From BBC ● Feb. 24, 2026

The Ombudsman also found the commission "limited the possibility of its departments to provide meaningful input" by condensing internal consultations into "less than 24 hours over a weekend".

From Barron's ● Nov. 27, 2025

A little more condensing would have been welcome.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2025

Thus Savery’s engine sucked and blew, just like a bellows, but the sucking was caused by condensing steam and the blowing was caused by expanding steam.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• compress
• curtail
• shorten
• summarize
• thicken