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Synonyms

diffusive

American  
[dih-fyoo-siv] / dɪˈfju sɪv /

adjective

  1. tending to diffuse; characterized by diffusion.


diffusive British  
/ dɪˈfjuːsɪv /

adjective

  1. characterized by diffusion

"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

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of diffusive

First recorded in 1605–15; diffuse + -ive

Vocabulary lists containing diffusive

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.

"In this state, quantum coherence and many-body entanglement prevent the system from thermalizing and from showing diffusive behavior, even under sustained external driving," explains Hanns Christoph Nägerl.

From Science Daily • Jan. 8, 2026

While silicon systems rely on electrons to perform computations, Yang's diffusive memristors use the motion of atoms instead, creating a process that more closely resembles how biological neurons transmit information.

From Science Daily • Nov. 5, 2025

It was more of a diffusive process where the leadership faltered.

From Slate • Mar. 6, 2021

Aciman, a famous Proustian, is clearly interested in the diffusive action of time and the heartaches of temps perdu.

From Washington Post • Oct. 29, 2019

Sometimes he means by preference that vast and most diffusive race which throughout Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, the Euxine and the Euphrates, represented the Græco-Macedonian blood from the time of Alexander downwards.

From The Posthumous Works of Thomas De Quincey, Vol. 2 by Japp, Alexander H. (Alexander Hay)

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