evaporate
Americanverb (used without object)
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evaporates,
present (3rd person singular)
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evaporated,
past participle, past
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evaporating
present participle
verb (used with object)
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evaporates,
present (3rd person singular)
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evaporated,
past participle, past
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evaporating
present participle
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to convert into a gaseous state or vapor; drive off or extract in the form of vapor.
The warm sun evaporated the dew.
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to extract moisture or liquid from, as by heat, so as to make dry or to reduce to a denser state.
to evaporate fruit.
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to cause to disappear or fade; dissipate.
His involvement in the scandal evaporated any hope he had for a political career.
verb
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to change or cause to change from a liquid or solid state to a vapour Compare boil 1
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to lose or cause to lose liquid by vaporization, leaving a more concentrated residue
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to disappear or cause to disappear; fade away or cause to fade away
all her doubts evaporated
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(tr) to deposit (a film, metal, etc) by vaporization of a liquid or solid and the subsequent condensation of its vapour
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
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evaporabilitynoun
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evaporationnoun
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evaporatornoun
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preevaporateverb
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evaporableadjective
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evaporativeadjective
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half-evaporatedadjective
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half-evaporatingadjective
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nonevaporatingadjective
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unevaporatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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evaporatesimple
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evaporatessimple
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have evaporatedperfect
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has evaporatedperfect
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am evaporatingprogressive
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are evaporatingprogressive
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is evaporatingprogressive
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have been evaporatingperfect progressive
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has been evaporatingperfect progressive
Past
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evaporatedsimple
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had evaporatedperfect
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was evaporatingprogressive
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were evaporatingprogressive
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had been evaporatingperfect progressive
Future
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
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.
Vocabulary lists containing evaporate
Words to Know Before You Defrost the Bird
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50 Great Words from The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, by Mark Haddon
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Structure and Properties of Matter - Middle School
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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:
Bonta previously has said his preference would be structural remedies — divesting key business units — rather than “behavioral” compromises that could evaporate soon after the merger closed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
They move air across the skin, which can help sweat evaporate and make people feel cooler.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026
Richard Windsor, an independent analyst at Radio Free Mobile, said Alphabet’s earnings-per-share figure hinged largely on the “illusory security of a series of unrealized investment returns that will evaporate at the first hint of trouble.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 26, 2026
These two-in-one shorts layer a lightweight shell over a liner that’s constructed from cloud-shaped fibers which boost the surface area sweat can evaporate from.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
Summer waned, seeming to evaporate in its own heat.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
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
That is the real prize, and it evaporates the instant one man tries to seize it all.
From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2026
"If you drop coffee on a surface, eventually the water evaporates and there's a ring left at the outer edge that is the concentrated coffee particles," says Guo.
From Science Daily ● May 31, 2026
All my anger at her over the last week evaporates in a haze of worry about the ice cream machine.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
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
This misdirection masked Washington’s responsibility for $2.7 trillion in U.S. financial sector losses and $4.1 trillion globally, alongside massive indirect destruction—a $14 trillion loss in U.S. output and $19 trillion in evaporated household wealth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
While Platner—whose lead in the race had evaporated after a previous wave of stories about his relationship history—has not yet relented, he has suggested that he’s reassessing his run.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
The optimism of the victory over New Zealand in the first Test has evaporated.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
After an hour of collecting evaporated water, it wasn’t half-full.
From "Adrift" by Paul Griffin
"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
Summer jobs for teens are evaporating, as rising inflation and higher fuel prices squeeze the small businesses and restaurants that typically hire them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 24, 2026
“The argument for having lower rates is just evaporating right before our very eyes,” said Brian Bethune, an economist at Boston College, in an interview.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 28, 2026
"States need institutions that help them work together," he said, warning that the very concept of international cooperation appeared to be evaporating.
From Barron's ● Dec. 31, 2025
I felt myself shrink under his hooded gaze, all my words evaporating in an instant.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
