saponify

[ suh-pon-uh-fahy ]

verb (used with object),sa·pon·i·fied, sa·pon·i·fy·ing.
  1. to convert (a fat) into soap by treating with an alkali.

  2. to decompose (any ester), forming the corresponding alcohol and acid or salt.

verb (used without object),sa·pon·i·fied, sa·pon·i·fy·ing.
  1. to become converted into soap.

Origin of saponify

1
1815–25; <Latin sāpōn- (stem of sāpō) soap + -ify

Other words from saponify

  • sa·pon·i·fi·a·ble, adjective
  • sa·pon·i·fi·ca·tion, noun
  • sa·pon·i·fi·er, noun
  • non·sa·pon·i·fi·a·ble, adjective
  • non·sa·pon·i·fi·ca·tion, noun
  • un·sa·pon·i·fi·a·ble, adjective
  • un·sa·pon·i·fied, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for saponify

saponify

/ (səˈpɒnɪˌfaɪ) /


verb-fies, -fying or -fied chem
  1. to undergo or cause to undergo a process in which a fat is converted into a soap by treatment with alkali

  2. to undergo or cause to undergo a reaction in which an ester is hydrolysed to an acid and an alcohol as a result of treatment with an alkali

Origin of saponify

1
C19: from French saponifier, from Latin sāpō soap

Derived forms of saponify

  • saponifiable, adjective
  • saponifier, noun
  • saponification, 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