erode
[ ih-rohd ]
/ ɪˈroʊd /
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verb (used with object), e·rod·ed, e·rod·ing.
to eat into or away; destroy by slow consumption or disintegration: Battery acid had eroded the engine. Inflation erodes the value of our money.
to form (a gully, butte, or the like) by erosion.
verb (used without object), e·rod·ed, e·rod·ing.
to become eroded.
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Origin of erode
First recorded in 1605–15; from French ė́roder or directly from Latin ērōdere, equivalent to ē- “out of, from” + rōdere “to gnaw”; see e-1
OTHER WORDS FROM erode
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
British Dictionary definitions for erode
erode
/ (ɪˈrəʊd) /
verb
to grind or wear down or away or become ground or worn down or away
to deteriorate or cause to deterioratejealousy eroded the relationship
(tr; usually passive) pathol to remove (tissue) by ulceration
Derived forms of erode
erodent, adjective, nounerodible, adjectiveWord Origin for erode
C17: from Latin ērōdere, from ex- 1 + rōdere to gnaw
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Medical definitions for erode
erode
[ ĭ-rōd′ ]
v.
To wear away by or as if by abrasion.
To eat into; ulcerate.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.