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Synonyms

defuse

American

[dee-fyooz] / diˈfjuz /

Or defuze

verb (used with object)

to remove the fuze from (a bomb, mine, etc.).
to make less dangerous, tense, or embarrassing.

to defuse a potentially ugly situation.

verb (used without object)

to grow less dangerous; weaken.

defuse British

/ diːˈfjuːz /

verb

to remove the triggering device of (a bomb, etc)
to remove the cause of tension from (a crisis, etc)

"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

Commonly Confused

See diffuse

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

defuser

noun

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of defuse

First recorded in 1940–45; de- + fuse ¹

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:

defuse defuses defused defusing

But residents of Puerto Vallarta, which sits on a huge horseshoe-shaped bay that helps defuse the power of a hurricane, appeared largely unfazed by the threat.

From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026

The Parades Commission began operating in 1998 to regulate parades and try to defuse tension around marches.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

Cooper said he had to defuse that encounter.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026

But the “nope” numbers reveal how Wembanyama could defuse Portland’s attack without laying a finger on the ball.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026

I smiled and spoke as politely as I could to defuse the situation.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

He defuses them, crushing the cans and dragging them into the driveway.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 10, 2025

By being open about her autism, Woo defuses and demystifies it for neurotypical colleagues and clients.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 13, 2023

An unprecedented compromise between the enemy states, the deal opens the way for offshore energy exploration and defuses one source of potential conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.

From Reuters ● Oct. 18, 2022

Reporting their results this Wednesday in The Proceedings of the Royal Society A, the team concludes that water both makes and defuses these doughy volcanic bombs.

From New York Times ● Sep. 11, 2021

And although there couldn’t be a more neutral statement, it defuses any insectious worries I might have given her.

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

An Israeli army captain finally defused the standoff, but the Palestinians never reached their property and the settlers appeared to suffer no consequences.

From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026

New Zealand's smarts initially defused the fire and fury inside the cauldron, however.

From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026

She declined to answer questions on whether tensions had been defused with Washington.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 25, 2026

The summit will offer Brussels the chance to turn the page after a bruising transatlantic crisis over Greenland -- now seemingly defused.

From Barron's ● Jan. 24, 2026

And I took great care to appear so deeply, thoroughly unmoved by the whole photo debacle that the mess defused itself in a matter of days.

From "A Very Large Expanse of Sea" by Tahereh Mafi

He landed on the cover of Time magazine in 1999, the leading figure in what the magazine dubbed “The Committee to Save the World” after defusing financial crises in Asia and Russia.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026

Netflix has amended its proposed $72-billion purchase of Warner Bros. and HBO, converting it to an all-cash offer in hopes of defusing criticisms from rival bidder, David Ellison’s Paramount.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 20, 2026

She has tightened drug enforcement along the border, expelled imprisoned cartel bosses wanted by the U.S. and imposed 50% tariffs on Chinese-made vehicles and other goods, defusing U.S. threats of harsher tariffs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 27, 2025

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam was more cautious, saying Lebanon remained "far" from diplomatic normalisation with Israel and that the talks were focused on "defusing tension".

From BBC ● Dec. 4, 2025

Since they had moved to Ravenel, Lillian had charted his moods like a cartographer, and her instinct for defusing his temper before it erupted told her this was a day for caution.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

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