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definitions

vaporize

[vey-puh-rahyz]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR vaporize ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), va·por·ized, va·por·iz·ing.

to cause to change into vapor.

verb (used without object), va·por·ized, va·por·iz·ing.

to become converted into vapor.
to indulge in boastful talk; speak braggingly.
Also especially British, va·por·ise.

Origin of vaporize

First recorded in 1625–35; vapor + -ize
Related formsva·por·iz·a·ble, adjectivere·va·por·ize, verb, re·va·por·ized, re·va·por·iz·ing.un·va·por·ized, adjective
Can be confusedevanesce evaporate liquefy melt thaw transpire vaporize
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for vaporize

strike, destroy, terminate, kill, exterminate

Examples from the Web for vaporize

Contemporary Examples of vaporize

  • Even the things he supposedly got out of this deal could vaporize.

    The Daily Beast logo
    Obama Gives It All Away

    Michael Tomasky

    July 31, 2011

Historical Examples of vaporize

  • Nearly all liquids will vaporize if permitted to come into contact with air.

    Motors

    James Slough Zerbe

  • I suppose, then, that only the rich and the aristocratic ‘vaporize’?

    Unveiling a Parallel

    Alice Ilgenfritz Jones and Ella Marchant

  • They begin to heat, perhaps to heat irreversibly, and if they get out of control, they may vaporize.

    The Star Lord

    Boyd Ellanby

  • There is nothing more easy than to vaporize reality altogether, by way of exalting a philosophy.

  • The crude petroleum is distilled as rapidly as possible with fire heat to vaporize off the naphthas and the burning oils.

    Aviation Engines

    Victor Wilfred Pag

British Dictionary definitions for vaporize

vaporize

vaporise

verb

to change or cause to change into vapour or into the gaseous state
to evaporate or disappear or cause to evaporate or disappear, esp suddenly
to destroy or be destroyed by being turned into a gas as a result of extreme heat (for example, generated by a nuclear explosion)
Derived Formsvaporizable or vaporisable, adjectivevaporization or vaporisation, 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
Word Origin and History for vaporize
v.

1630s, from vapor + -ize. Originally "smoke tobacco;" later "convert into vapor" (1803), and "spray with fine mist" (1900). Related: Vaporized; vaporizing.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
vaporize in Medicine

vaporize

[vā′pə-rīz′]

v.

To convert or be converted into a vapor.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
vaporize in Science

vapor

[vā′pər]

The gaseous state of a substance that is normally liquid or solid at room temperature, such as water that has evaporated into the air. See more at vapor pressure. See also water vapor.
A faintly visible suspension of fine particles of matter in the air, as mist, fumes, or smoke.
A mixture of fine droplets of a substance and air, as the fuel mixture of an internal-combustion engine.
Related formsvaporize verb
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.