Synonyms

freeze-dry

American

[freez-drahy] / ˈfrizˈdraɪ /

verb (used with object)

freeze-dried, freeze-drying

to subject to freeze-drying.

freeze-dry British

verb

(tr) to preserve (a substance) by rapid freezing and subsequently drying in a vacuum

"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

freeze-dry Scientific

To preserve a substance, such as food, by freezing it rapidly and placing it in a vacuum chamber, where the water frozen in the substance evaporates through sublimation.

Etymology

Origin of freeze-dry

First recorded in 1945–50

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.

You freeze-dry it and you rehydrate it on the battlefield with drinking water, and that’s it.

From Slate • Sep. 1, 2025

ReadyWise uses a common process: They freeze-dry food, removing as much liquid and oxygen as possible and then package it in airtight containers.

From Salon • Sep. 29, 2022

Instead, recent messages have included an advertisement for Harvest Right, which allows consumers to freeze-dry their dinner, preserving it in preparation for “whatever the future may bring.”

From The New Yorker • Apr. 7, 2017

The folks over at Perpetual Pet can freeze-dry your beloved pet in a familiar pose.

From Time • Oct. 11, 2014

Mr. McCullogh estimates that about one-fifth of his customers seeking to freeze-dry their pets are from New York City.

From New York Times • Oct. 11, 2011

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023