des·ic·cate (dĕs′ĭ-kāt′) v. des·ic·cat·ed , des·ic·cat·ing , des·ic·cates
v. tr. 1. To dry out thoroughly.
2. To preserve (foods) by removing the moisture. See Synonyms at
dry .
3. To make dry, dull, or lifeless: "Stalinism desiccated the grassroots of urban government" (Timothy J. Colton).
v. intr. To become dry; dry out.
adj. (also -kĭt) Lacking spirit or animation; arid: "There was only the sun-bruised and desiccate feeling in his mind" (J.R. Salamanca).
[Latin dēsiccāre , dēsiccāt- : dē- , de- + siccāre , to dry up (from siccus , dry ).]
des′ic·ca′tion n.
des′ic·ca′tive adj.
des′ic·ca′tor n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
desiccate (ˈdɛsɪˌkeɪt ) vb 1. (Chemistry) (tr ) to remove most of the water from (a substance or material); dehydrate
2. (Cookery) (tr ) to preserve (food) by removing moisture; dry
3. (intr ) to become dried up
[C16: from Latin dēsiccāre to dry up, from de- + siccāre to dry, from siccus dry]
ˌdesicˈcation n
ˈdesiccative adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
des•ic•cate (ˈdɛs ɪˌkeɪt) v. -cat•ed, -cat•ing. v.t. 1. to dry thoroughly; dry up.
2. to preserve (food) by removing moisture; dehydrate.
v.i. 3. to become thoroughly dried.
[1565–75; < Latin dēsiccātus dried up, past participle of dēsiccāre =dē - + siccāre, derivative of siccus dry]
des`ic•ca′tion, n.
des′ic•ca`tive, adj.
des′ic•ca`tor, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
des·ic·cate (dĕs′ĭ-kāt′) To remove the moisture from something, or dry it thoroughly.
The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
desiccate Past participle: desiccatedGerund: desiccatingImperative Present Preterite Present Continuous Present Perfect Past Continuous Past Perfect Future Future Perfect Future Continuous Present Perfect Continuous Future Perfect Continuous Past Perfect Continuous Conditional Past Conditional Imperative desiccate desiccate
Present I desiccate you desiccate he/she/it desiccates we desiccate you desiccate they desiccate
Preterite I desiccated you desiccated he/she/it desiccated we desiccated you desiccated they desiccated
Present Continuous I am desiccating you are desiccating he/she/it is desiccating we are desiccating you are desiccating they are desiccating
Present Perfect I have desiccated you have desiccated he/she/it has desiccated we have desiccated you have desiccated they have desiccated
Past Continuous I was desiccating you were desiccating he/she/it was desiccating we were desiccating you were desiccating they were desiccating
Past Perfect I had desiccated you had desiccated he/she/it had desiccated we had desiccated you had desiccated they had desiccated
Future I will desiccate you will desiccate he/she/it will desiccate we will desiccate you will desiccate they will desiccate
Future Perfect I will have desiccated you will have desiccated he/she/it will have desiccated we will have desiccated you will have desiccated they will have desiccated
Future Continuous I will be desiccating you will be desiccating he/she/it will be desiccating we will be desiccating you will be desiccating they will be desiccating
Present Perfect Continuous I have been desiccating you have been desiccating he/she/it has been desiccating we have been desiccating you have been desiccating they have been desiccating
Future Perfect Continuous I will have been desiccating you will have been desiccating he/she/it will have been desiccating we will have been desiccating you will have been desiccating they will have been desiccating
Past Perfect Continuous I had been desiccating you had been desiccating he/she/it had been desiccating we had been desiccating you had been desiccating they had been desiccating
Conditional I would desiccate you would desiccate he/she/it would desiccate we would desiccate you would desiccate they would desiccate
Past Conditional I would have desiccated you would have desiccated he/she/it would have desiccated we would have desiccated you would have desiccated they would have desiccated
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011