evaporate

American  

[ih-vap-uh-rayt] / ɪˈvæp əˌreɪt /

verb (used without object)

• evaporates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• evaporated,
  past participle,  past
• evaporating
  present participle

1. to change from a liquid or solid state into vapor; pass off in vapor.

   Synonyms:

   vaporize

2. to give off moisture.

3. to disappear; vanish; fade.

   His hopes evaporated.

   Synonyms:

   evanesce

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verb (used with object)

• evaporates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• evaporated,
  past participle,  past
• evaporating
  present participle

1. to convert into a gaseous state or vapor; drive off or extract in the form of vapor.

   The warm sun evaporated the dew.

2. to extract moisture or liquid from, as by heat, so as to make dry or to reduce to a denser state.

   to evaporate fruit.

3. to cause to disappear or fade; dissipate.

   His involvement in the scandal evaporated any hope he had for a political career.

evaporate British  

/ ɪˈvæpəˌreɪt /

verb

1. to change or cause to change from a liquid or solid state to a vapour Compare boil 1

2. to lose or cause to lose liquid by vaporization, leaving a more concentrated residue

3. to disappear or cause to disappear; fade away or cause to fade away

   all her doubts evaporated

4. (tr) to deposit (a film, metal, etc) by vaporization of a liquid or solid and the subsequent condensation of its vapour

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Usage

What does evaporate mean? Evaporate means to change from a liquid or solid state into vapor (like fog, mist, or steam). It can be used in a passive way, as in The water evaporated overnight, or an active way, as in The sun evaporates the water on the surface. The process of evaporating is called evaporation. Both terms are typically used in the context of water turning into water vapor. Water evaporates when it changes into steam through boiling, but in scientific terms, evaporation typically refers to the change of a liquid into a vapor at a temperature below the boiling point, such as when water evaporates from the surface of the ocean. In this way, evaporation is an important part of the water cycle. Evaporate can also be used in a figurative way meaning to disappear, as in The family’s wealth has evaporated, and now they have nothing. Example: The dew on the grass evaporates more quickly in the sunny parts of the yard.

Synonym Usage

Evaporate, dehydrate, dry mean to abstract moisture from. To evaporate is to remove moisture by means of heat, forced ventilation, or the like, and thus to produce condensation or shriveling: to evaporate milk, sliced apples. To dehydrate is to remove moisture from a vegetable, fruit, or body tissue: to dehydrate fruit; dehydrated from running. To dry may mean to wipe moisture off the surface or to withdraw moisture by natural means, such as exposure to air or heat: to dry a dish, clothes.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• evaporability
  noun
• evaporation
  noun
• evaporator
  noun
• preevaporate
  verb
• evaporable
  adjective
• evaporative
  adjective
• half-evaporated
  adjective
• half-evaporating
  adjective
• nonevaporating
  adjective
• unevaporated
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• evaporating
  present
• evaporated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• evaporate
  simple
• evaporates
  simple
• have evaporated
  perfect
• has evaporated
  perfect
• am evaporating
  progressive
• are evaporating
  progressive
• is evaporating
  progressive
• have been evaporating
  perfect progressive
• has been evaporating
  perfect progressive

Past

• evaporated
  simple
• had evaporated
  perfect
• was evaporating
  progressive
• were evaporating
  progressive
• had been evaporating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will evaporate
  simple
• will have evaporated
  perfect
• will be evaporating
  progressive
• will have been evaporating
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of evaporate

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English evaporaten, from Latin ēvapōrātus (past participle of ēvapōrāre “to disperse in vapor”); see e- ¹, vapor, -ate ¹

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Explanation

To evaporate is to fade away or to literally turn into vapor. If you leave a glass of water out and the water slowly disappears, it's not being consumed by elves; it's evaporating. People often use the word evaporate metaphorically because it produces a strong image of something disappearing like vapor. When the economy goes through a rough patch, funding for projects like education and the arts tends to evaporate or disappear. Your feelings for a mate might evaporate after you spend too much time with him or her.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

evaporate evaporates evaporated evaporating

A third Toyota driver, Sami Pajari, finished a further one point behind in third - having seen his own title challenge evaporate on the final weekend.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

Any quantum black holes produced under the proposed models would evaporate essentially immediately.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 23, 2026

Memecoins have no intrinsic value, and often see their market value evaporate within days or hours after launch.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026

Billions of dollars of annual sales can evaporate, sometimes within a year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2026

The dampness left in the floor carpet would evaporate in the sun’s heat.

From "The Voyage Of The Frog" by Gary Paulsen

Dry heat browns, evaporates and concentrates while you go do something else.

From Salon ● Sep. 28, 2026

There is no especially good reason for this, and it pretty much evaporates for the remainder of the eight-episode series.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026

When rain falls in the summer months, high daytime temperatures can mean that the water quickly evaporates away from the soil.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

It then rains, but the rain evaporates before it reaches the ground.

From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026

Also snow can be pink if red dirt dissolves in water that evaporates and— Dad squeezes my shoulder.

From "Mockingbird" by Kathryn Erskine

LIV Golf is playing what could be its final tournament as executives scramble to find new investors after its Saudi funding evaporated.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

U.S. stocks fell Thursday as the brief calm in the bond market evaporated.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

According to Judge Ferrero, Byrd and Roberts initially had a right to defend themselves, but that right evaporated once their attacker began retreating—while he still held his shotgun—and they moved toward him.

From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026

Their findings suggest that the material came from a region near the surface of its parent asteroid, where liquid water evaporated and left behind increasingly concentrated salts.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

Molly’s dream of a quiet summer evaporated, for the house was desperately in need of rehabilitation—“an old wreck, one of the oldest around, and built without benefit of architect” she recollected.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

“We have to lean in to that because that’s evaporating in the fast food space.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

This is because no energy is lost in evaporating any soil moisture so it goes directly into heating the air.

From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026

"Not only have we been able to clear the view, but we can finally pin down what the clouds are made out of and how they're condensing and evaporating as they move around the planet."

From Science Daily ● May 27, 2026

“With input prices soaring and rate cut expectations evaporating, it’s understandable why it is a poor performer,” he says.

From Barron's ● Mar. 20, 2026

I tried evaporating on the spot, I swear.

From "Bronx Masquerade" by Nikki Grimes

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Related Words

• disappear
• disperse
• dissipate
• fade
• melt
• vanish
• vaporize
• weaken

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