neutralize
to make neutral; cause to undergo neutralization.
to make (something) ineffective; counteract; nullify: carelessness that neutralized our efforts.
Military. to put out of action or make incapable of action: to neutralize an enemy position.
to declare neutral; invest with neutrality in order to exempt from involvement during a war: to neutralize a city to prevent bombing.
to add an acid to a basic solution or a base to an acidic solution until the resulting solution is chemically neutral (pH = 7).
Electricity. to render electrically or magnetically neutral.
to become neutral or neutralized; undergo neutralization: With this additive the solution begins to neutralize.
Origin of neutralize
1- Also especially British, neu·tral·ise .
Other words from neutralize
- neu·tral·iz·er, noun
- o·ver·neu·tral·ize, verb (used with object), o·ver·neu·tral·ized, o·ver·neu·tral·iz·ing.
- o·ver·neu·tral·iz·er, noun
- re·neu·tral·ize, verb, re·neu·tral·ized, re·neu·tral·iz·ing.
- un·neu·tral·ize, verb (used with object), un·neu·tral·ized, un·neu·tral·iz·ing.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use neutralize in a sentence
Soda lime and potassium permanganate and nickel salts were among the neutralizers used.
Creative Chemistry | Edwin E. SlossonWhen the G-4's went out the fusion must have shorted the neutralizers.
Triplanetary | Edward Elmer SmithAt first, I thought that was all, but my neutralizers are dead and I don't know what else.
Triplanetary | Edward Elmer Smith
British Dictionary definitions for neutralize
neutralise
/ (ˈnjuːtrəˌlaɪz) /
(also intr) to render or become ineffective or neutral by counteracting, mixing, etc; nullify
(also intr) to make or become electrically or chemically neutral
to exclude (a country) from the sphere of warfare or alliances by international agreement: the great powers neutralized Belgium in the 19th century
to render (an army) incapable of further military action
Derived forms of neutralize
- neutralization or neutralisation, noun
- neutralizer or neutraliser, noun
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
Scientific definitions for neutralize
[ nōō′trə-līz′ ]
To cause an acidic solution to become neutral by adding a base to it or to cause a basic solution to become neutral by adding an acid to it. Salt and water are usually formed in the process.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Browse