corrode
Americanverb (used with object)
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corrodes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
corroded,
past participle, past
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corroding
present participle
-
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)
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corrodes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
corroded,
past participle, past
-
corroding
present participle
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
Derived Forms
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corrodantnoun
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corrodentnoun
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corrodernoun
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corrodibilitynoun
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corrodibleadjective
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noncorrodibleadjective
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noncorrodingadjective
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uncorrodedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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corrodesimple
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corrodessimple
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have corrodedperfect
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has corrodedperfect
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am corrodingprogressive
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are corrodingprogressive
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is corrodingprogressive
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have been corrodingperfect progressive
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has been corrodingperfect progressive
Past
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corrodedsimple
-
had corrodedperfect
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was corrodingprogressive
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were corrodingprogressive
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had been corrodingperfect progressive
Future
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
Explanation
Corrode means to eat away at and cause to deteriorate, like rust slowly taking over an old bike left out in the rain. Stemming from a Latin word that means "to gnaw away," corrode is a verb that usually describes destroying a metal by oxidation or by some other kind of chemical action. Acid is particularly corrosive, or able to corrode things easily. The word corrode can also be used figuratively. Way back when, the grandmas of the world thought rock music would corrode the minds of young people. Thank goodness that didn't really pan out.
Vocabulary lists containing corrode
Red Kayak
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Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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"I Stand Here Ironing" by Tillie Olsen
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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.
See Examples For:
The EU executive, however, has repeatedly insisted the new rules would not corrode national labour and tax laws.
From Barron's ● Jul. 6, 2026
In such an environment, it is especially reckless to assume that war, no matter how justified, will somehow purify institutions rather than corrode them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 5, 2026
They worry the practice could mislead voters and corrode trust in nonpartisan news providers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2026
Committee chair Matt Western warned mishandling similar future cases will "corrode public trust".
From BBC ● Dec. 2, 2025
His golden skin began to corrode, breaking into chunks.
From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan
Digital technology isn’t merely accelerating some inevitable tide but is a force unto itself—one that makes solitary leisure more appealing, corrodes the incentives for sociality and, as a downstream consequence, reduces marriage and fertility.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026
The criticism forced Attorney General Eric Holder to apologize and led to new Justice Department policies sharply limiting investigations of journalists, recognizing that targeting reporters to identify sources corrodes the First Amendment itself.
From Salon ● Jan. 17, 2026
“When an officer violates someone’s civil rights, it corrodes trust in law enforcement and undermines the effectiveness of other officers who sacrifice to protect the public,” U.S.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2024
Whether all this corrodes public trust in politicians and what they say - well that’s a question for another day.
From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2024
The salt in seawater also corrodes metal and destroys electrical connectors.
From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland
The hope and the change, the transcendent conviction that the systemic levers of government are not corroded beyond repair, the optimist I used to be—it all came rushing back.
From Slate ● Oct. 15, 2026
SNP strategists believe the controversy corroded trust in the party and cost them a significant amount of support.
From BBC ● May 25, 2026
He is right that forward guidance has corroded the central bank’s discipline rather than sharpened it.
From MarketWatch ● May 8, 2026
The infrastructure is part of an offshore oil operation that had been closed since 2015, when a corroded section of one of the pipelines burst and caused one of the state’s worst oil spills.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2026
I felt even my soul had been corroded by salt.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
More than five thousand panes of glass have been replaced, and the once corroding ironwork has been repaired and repainted.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
"I cannot describe it. I mean, it looks ugly, really ugly," the 69-year-old said, peering through its corroding gates.
From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026
“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 ● Dec. 5, 2025
Much of the corroding metal throughout the structure needs to be replaced, but “the masonry’s in good condition,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 26, 2025
Worry had crept on a corroding world, and what was lost— good manners, ease and beauty?
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
