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Synonyms

vaporize

American  
[vey-puh-rahyz] / ˈveɪ pəˌraɪz /
especially British, vaporise

verb (used with object)

vaporizes, present (3rd person singular) vaporized, past participle, past vaporizing present participle
  1. to cause to change into vapor.


verb (used without object)

vaporizes, present (3rd person singular) vaporized, past participle, past vaporizing present participle
  1. to become converted into vapor.

  2. to indulge in boastful talk; speak braggingly.

vaporize British  
/ ˈveɪpəˌraɪz /

verb

  1. to change or cause to change into vapour or into the gaseous state

  2. to evaporate or disappear or cause to evaporate or disappear, esp suddenly

  3. to destroy or be destroyed by being turned into a gas as a result of extreme heat (for example, generated by a nuclear explosion)

"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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Etymology

Origin of vaporize

First recorded in 1625–35; vapor + -ize

Explanation

To vaporize is to evaporate and turn into gas. If you're watching a sci-fi movie, it probably means to vanish quickly or be utterly obliterated by a phaser gun. As the structure of the word suggests, vaporize means "turn into vapor." Sometimes this means just turning into gas, like when boiling water turns into steam and rises into the atmosphere. Other times, something more concentrated is left behind, like when maple sap is boiled down into syrup. And in the greenhouse (or grocery store produce section), to vaporize is also to spray your green things with a light coating of mist.

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