corrode
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to eat or wear away gradually as if by gnawing, especially by chemical action.
-
to impair; deteriorate.
Jealousy corroded his character.
verb (used without object)
verb
-
to eat away or be eaten away, esp by chemical action as in the oxidation or rusting of a metal
-
(tr) to destroy gradually; consume
his jealousy corroded his happiness
Other Word Forms
- corrodant noun
- corrodent noun
- corroder noun
- corrodibility noun
- corrodible adjective
- noncorrodible adjective
- noncorroding adjective
- uncorroded adjective
Etymology
Origin of corrode
1350–1400; Middle English (< Middle French ) < Latin corrōdere to gnaw to pieces, equivalent to cor- cor- + rōdere to gnaw; akin to rodent
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 fountain “contains deteriorated concrete, corroded structural steel and hazardous materials and its mechanical and electrical systems are beyond repair,” Goodwin said.
Edison said it began looking for corroded transmission towers in 2020, but found so many that it temporarily stopped those evaluations in 2022 to focus on fixing those found unsafe.
From Los Angeles Times
Antisemitism corrodes the civic foundations on which plural societies depend.
“I believe they have been corroding our civil discourse, they’ve been ‘attention fracking’ our children and treating our youth like products, not people.”
From Salon
Committee chair Matt Western warned mishandling similar future cases will "corrode public trust".
From BBC
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.
