deliquesce

American  

[del-i-kwes] / ˌdɛl ɪˈkwɛs /

verb (used without object)

deliquesced, deliquescing

1. to become liquid by absorbing moisture from the air, as certain salts.

2. to melt away.

3. Botany. to form many small divisions or branches.

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deliquesce British  

/ ˌdɛlɪˈkwɛs /

verb

1. (esp of certain salts) to dissolve gradually in water absorbed from the air

2. (esp of certain fungi) to dissolve into liquid, usually at maturity

3. (of a plant stem) to form many branches

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Etymology

Origin of deliquesce

First recorded in 1750–60; from Latin dēliquēscere “to become liquid,” equivalent to dē- de- + liquēscere; see liquescent

Explanation

To deliquesce is to melt away or become liquid. On a very hot and humid day, a dish of salt left on the counter will begin to deliquesce, slowly dissolving into a pool of moisture. In scientific terms, a substance deliquesces when it absorbs so much water from the atmosphere that it begins to dissolve. Many different things deliquesce, including certain salts and plants, gradually becoming damp or mushy and eventually melting away completely. You can also use this word in a joking or figurative way whenever you're really sweaty: "It's so hot out here I'm starting to deliquesce!" Deliquesce is from the Latin deliquescere, "to melt away."

Example Sentences

Shivaree, chthonian, erumpent, tintinnabulation, exonumia, requiescat, deipnosophist, omphaloskepsis, horripilation, deliquesce, apopemptic.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 26, 2021

Then, surprise: a secret chamber filled with the yolk of a hard-boiled egg, bright yellow and just starting to deliquesce.

From New York Times • Jul. 19, 2012

The home-schooled whiz was such a wreck, she asked to wait offstage between spelling such words as deliquesce and sufflaminate.

From Time Magazine Archive

The salt is so pure that it does not attract moisture and deliquesce.

From Santo Domingo A Country with a Future by Schoenrich, Otto

It was nothing else than copper sulphate which had been allowed to deliquesce to a white powder.

From Psychotherapy by Walsh, James J. (James Joseph)