disassemble
Americanverb (used with object)
-
disassembles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
disassembled,
past participle, past
-
disassembling
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
disassembles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
disassembled,
past participle, past
-
disassembling
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
disassemblesimple
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disassemblessimple
-
have disassembledperfect
-
has disassembledperfect
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am disassemblingprogressive
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are disassemblingprogressive
-
is disassemblingprogressive
-
have been disassemblingperfect progressive
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has been disassemblingperfect progressive
Past
-
disassembledsimple
-
had disassembledperfect
-
was disassemblingprogressive
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were disassemblingprogressive
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had been disassemblingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of disassemble
Explanation
The verb disassemble means to take something apart. It's one thing to disassemble a computer; it's a whole other thing to put it back together again. If you take your car to the repair shop to have a squeaky brake fixed, you'll be surprised to see the mechanics quickly disassemble your car, removing even its wheels and doors. You can use the word disassemble whenever something's dismantled or broken into pieces. Originally, disassemble meant "to disperse," or to stop a crowd of people from assembling, but the meaning changed to its current definition in the 1600s.
Vocabulary lists containing disassemble
Commonly Confused Words, List 4
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"Modern Automotive Technology," Vocabulary from Section 9
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The Kill Order
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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:
Everything that the casual moviegoer would consider “wrong” about Jenkin’s approach is what makes his films so transcendently jarring as they seemingly disassemble in front of our eyes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
For nearly half an hour, the soldier demonstrates different types of ammunition and how to assemble and disassemble the Kalashnikov using illustrated boards set up behind him on Haft-e Tir Square.
From Barron's ● May 19, 2026
The modular building took 10 weeks to install - including laying its foundations - and will take just days to disassemble when it is no longer required.
From BBC ● Nov. 10, 2025
The project to disassemble and eventually rebuild the chapel is expected to take four years.
From New York Times ● May 16, 2024
The basement in their North Logan home was an electronics graveyard that included Keith’s first Atari, an ancient model he’d sometimes pull out, disassemble, then solder back together as an improved version.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Nulaxy's aluminum laptop stand does exactly that and easily disassembles when it's not needed.
From The Verge ● Nov. 22, 2021
Throughout the tragicomic solo “Monologue,” a trumpeter literally disassembles the horn, producing a litany of hisses, sputters and rattles.
From New York Times ● Oct. 15, 2020
Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins In her bold and strange novel, Watkins disassembles the mythology of the American west, paying particular attention to its brutal expansionism and unquestioned promise of personal reinvention.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 12, 2020
The founder of Munro & Associates, a small Detroit-area firm that disassembles and analyzes new cars, said, “A lot of crow is being eaten around here.”
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 16, 2018
The energy yield depends on the amount of uranium and the time it can be held together before it disassembles itself.
From Textbooks ● Aug. 12, 2015
The German firm said it had disassembled the rocket to carry out investigations.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
She digitally "disassembled" the fossil one bone at a time and uncovered several anatomical features that differed from known Hesperosuchus specimens.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 30, 2026
It should work a lot like email, in which data composed of bits and bytes exist as a whole in one place, are disassembled, and then electronically transmitted to another place where they are reassembled.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026
“The Eaton Fire could not have occurred if SCE had simply disassembled and removed Structure M16T1,” the lawyers added.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2026
Muhammad appears carrying the disassembled lengths of the bed frame, held together like it’s an Enfield 1853 rifle-musket and he’s marching to the Battle of Fredericksburg.
From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali
The company has not issued any official statement about disassembling its changing rooms.
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026
From all accounts, Israeli and American military strikes are meeting and even exceeding their goals of disassembling the regime’s infrastructure.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 16, 2026
Stone wandered around, with a recorder hidden in his fedora, documenting and then disassembling all that, as well as what he recorded in his travels.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 10, 2025
There, Mark finds Gemma serenely disassembling the crib, and coaxes her to run with him.
From Salon ● Mar. 22, 2025
That’s why the idea of my mom disassembling her room like a traveling exhibit takes this echo of pain and turns it into something new and fresh.
From "Dumplin'" by Julie Murphy
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
