concentrate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to bring or draw to a common center or point of union; converge; direct toward one point; focus.
to concentrate one's attention on a problem; to concentrate the rays of the sun with a lens.
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to put or bring into a single place, group, etc..
The nation's wealth had been concentrated in a few families.
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to intensify; make denser, stronger, or purer, especially by the removal or reduction of liquid.
to concentrate fruit juice; to concentrate a sauce by boiling it down.
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Mining. to separate (metal or ore) from rock, sand, etc., so as to improve the quality of the valuable portion.
verb (used without object)
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to bring all efforts, faculties, activities, etc., to bear on one thing or activity (often followed by on orupon ).
to concentrate on solving a problem.
- Antonyms:
- diverge
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to come to or toward a common center; converge; collect.
The population concentrated in one part of the city.
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to become more intense, stronger, or purer.
noun
verb
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to come or cause to come to a single purpose or aim
to concentrate one's hopes on winning
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to make or become denser or purer by the removal of certain elements, esp the solvent of a solution
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(tr) to remove rock or sand from (an ore) to make it purer
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to bring one's faculties to bear (on); think intensely (about)
noun
Synonym Usage
See contract.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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concentrativenessnoun
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concentratornoun
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nonconcentrativenessnoun
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preconcentratenoun
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overconcentrateverb
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reconcentrateverb
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concentrativeadjective
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nonconcentrativeadjective
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unconcentrativeadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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concentratesimple
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concentratessimple
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have concentratedperfect
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has concentratedperfect
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am concentratingprogressive
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are concentratingprogressive
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is concentratingprogressive
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have been concentratingperfect progressive
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has been concentratingperfect progressive
Past
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concentratedsimple
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had concentratedperfect
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was concentratingprogressive
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were concentratingprogressive
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had been concentratingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of concentrate
First recorded in 1630–40; from French concentr(er) or Italian concentr(are) ( see con-, center) + -ate 1
Explanation
Concentrate means to make something stronger, denser, or more focused. If you concentrate your energy, for example, you become more powerful! Concentrate your efforts at digging, and you'll plant that shrub a lot faster. You may have seen the words "frozen concentrate" used to describe orange juice. That can of frozen orange goo is the juice in its purest, most condensed form — the concentrate — and it's much stronger and sweeter than the juice you'd drink. Another meaning of the verb concentrate refers to your mental focus. You might need to concentrate on what you're reading in order to understand it. When you concentrate, you strengthen your focus to shut out distractions.
Vocabulary lists containing concentrate
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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:
American policymakers should concentrate their efforts on accelerating the domestic AI industry and eliminating bottlenecks that would slow down AI-bred innovations such as new drugs, he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
More sulphate processing plants were expected to come on line by the time the ban on lithium concentrate exports comes into force in January 2027, he said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
The particles were then covered with a sugar coating that helped them enter the brain and concentrate inside tumors.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 17, 2026
“It’s going to concentrate the fundraising over the next few years as well into these already very large names,” Stanford said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
To tell you the truth, the three orphans were so excited to be out of Count Olaf’s house, and in this pleasant library, that they were a little distracted and unable to concentrate on cooking.
From "The Bad Beginning" by Lemony Snicket
Marine cloud brightening concentrates particles close to Earth's surface in one specific region.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 3, 2026
Lamine Yamal prefers to let the media talk the talk while he concentrates on walking the walk, even with the constant Ballon d'Or chatter that has followed him since he was 16.
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026
Sales rose almost 50% as the company sold higher-value products, such as Neodymium-Praseodymium External link, or NdPr, oxide and metal, instead of rare-earth oxide concentrates, which are processed by other companies.
From Barron's ● May 7, 2026
Coca-Cola KO -1.55%decrease; red down pointing triangle reported higher first-quarter profit, boosted by growth in sales of concentrates, which it sells to bottling partners.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
She takes a deep breath and concentrates on extracting a phrase from the reeling in her brain.
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
The hottest conditions will be concentrated on Wednesday before a weather front moving through on Thursday will usher in fresher air, bringing a noticeable change in feel.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
My last column, The Tax Strategy for People Suffering from Stock-Market Success, looked at 351 exchanges, in which investors can diversify a concentrated investment position by contributing it to a new ETF.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
The right response depends on whether the shock remains concentrated or becomes embedded in the U.S. economy.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
This selective reinforcement produces a current that is concentrated into a particular direction rather than spreading evenly through the material.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026
John Henry was still ushering people out of the burning Thicket entrance, and I concentrated as hard as I could.
From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia
But some brands are now choosing to spread their creator budgets across a vast array of creators rather than concentrating them on a select few accounts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
With “Remake,” he looks back at that footage, concentrating on the images he shot of Adrian since his birth in 1989.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2026
In 2017, the US government pulled more than half of its staff from its embassy in Havana after employees and their families reported dizziness, nausea and difficulty concentrating.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026
“Premium tiers sell out and premium prices rise because high-quality engagement demand is concentrating in a scarce set of premium acts,” the analysts said.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 2, 2026
Ranofer was silent, concentrating on keeping his expression casual while his mind spun furiously.
From "The Golden Goblet" by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
