dis·solve
(dĭ-zŏlv′)v. dis·solved, dis·solv·ing, dis·solves
v.tr.
1.
a. To cause to pass into solution: dissolve salt in water.
b. To reduce (solid matter) to liquid form; melt.
c. To cause to lose definition; blend or blur: "Morality has finally been dissolved in pity" (Leslie Fiedler).
2.
a. To cause to disappear or vanish; dispel: The sun dissolved the fog. That remark dissolved the tension in the room.
b. To break into component parts; disintegrate: The deal dissolved the company into three separate businesses.
c. To bring to an end, as by breaking up; terminate or annul: "General de Gaulle was returned to power ... with a mandate to dissolve an overseas empire that had turned into a nightmare" (Alison Jolly).
d. To dismiss (an assembly such as a legislative body).
3. To cause to be moved emotionally or upset.
v.intr.
1.
a. To pass into solution: Salt dissolves easily in water.
b. To become liquid; melt: The clumps of snow dissolved into puddles.
c. To lose definition; become blurred or indistinguishable: "The last shadows have dissolved into darkness" (Daniel Blajan).
2.
a. To become disintegrated; disappear: The mist dissolves as the sun rises.
b. To be broken up into separate parts: The empire dissolved into many separate countries.
c. To be brought to an end; be annulled or terminated: After a long separation, the marriage finally dissolved.
3. To be moved or overcome emotionally: I dissolved into helpless laughter.
4. To make a transition between shots in a cinematic work using a superimposition in which the first shot fades out while the second shot gradually appears.
n.
A transition in a cinematic work consisting of a superimposition in which the first shot fades out while the second shot gradually appears. Also called lap dissolve.
[Middle English dissolven, from Latin dissolvere : dis-, dis- + solvere, to release; see leu- in Indo-European roots.]
dis·solv′a·ble adj.
dis·solv′er 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.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
| Noun | 1. |  dissolver - a liquid substance capable of dissolving other substances; "the solvent does not change its state in forming a solution"acetone, dimethyl ketone, propanone - the simplest ketone; a highly inflammable liquid widely used as an organic solvent and as material for making plastics chlorobenzene - a colorless volatile flammable liquid with an almond odor that is made from chlorine and benzene; used as a solvent and in the production of phenol and DDT and other organic compounds carbolic acid, hydroxybenzene, oxybenzene, phenylic acid, phenol - a toxic white soluble crystalline acidic derivative of benzene; used in manufacturing and as a disinfectant and antiseptic; poisonous if taken internally carbon tet, carbon tetrachloride, perchloromethane, tetrachloromethane - a colorless nonflammable liquid used as a solvent for fats and oils; because of its toxicity its use as a cleaning fluid or fire extinguisher has declined medium - an intervening substance through which something is achieved; "the dissolving medium is called a solvent" hexane - a colorless flammable liquid alkane derived from petroleum and used as a solvent menstruum - (archaic) a solvent naphtha - any of various volatile flammable liquid hydrocarbon mixtures; used chiefly as solvents remover - a solvent that removes a substance (usually from a surface); "paint remover"; "rust remover"; "hair remover" methylbenzene, toluene - a colorless flammable liquid obtained from petroleum or coal tar; used as a solvent for gums and lacquers and in high-octane fuels |
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