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hypersensitize

American  
[hahy-per-sen-si-tahyz] / ˌhaɪ pərˈsɛn sɪˌtaɪz /
especially British, hypersensitise

verb (used with object)

hypersensitized, hypersensitizing
  1. Photography. to treat (a film or emulsion) so as to increase its speed.

  2. Pathology. to strongly heighten a reaction upon reexposure to a particular antigen.


hypersensitize British  
/ ˌhaɪpəˈsɛnsɪˌtaɪz /

verb

  1. (tr) to treat (a photographic emulsion), usually after manufacture and shortly before exposure, to increase its speed

"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 hypersensitize

First recorded in 1895–1900; hypersensit(ive) + -ize

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:

His film was Du Pont Superior panchromatic, hypersensitized to half again its rated speed by exposing it to fumes of the strongest ammonia obtainable in a closed box for four minutes.

From Time Magazine Archive

Only with his retreat, certain words, like Parthian arrows, floated in from the storm to Peckover's hypersensitized ears.

From A Poached Peerage by Magnay, William

In the hypersensitized state of her nerves the question hurt keenly.

From The Open Question a tale of two temperaments by Robins, Elizabeth

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