concentrate

verb con·cen·trate \ ˈkän(t)-sən-ˌtrāt , -ˌsen- \

Updated on: 16 Apr 2018

Definition of concentrate

concentrated; concentrating

transitive verb

1 a : to bring or direct toward a common center or objective : focus

concentrate one's efforts

The lenses concentrate sunlight.

b : to gather into one body, mass, or force

Power was concentrated in a few able hands.

concentrate the energy of a sound wave

c : to accumulate (a toxic substance) in bodily tissues

Fish concentrate mercury.

2 a : to make less dilute

concentrate syrup

b : to express or exhibit in condensed form

intransitive verb

1 : to draw toward or meet in a common center

2 : gather, collect

Cuban immigrants who concentrate in Florida

3 : to focus one's powers, efforts, or attention

concentrate on a problem

Farmers are concentrating on the wheat harvest.

—

concentratedly

play \ˈkän(t)-sən-ˌtrā-təd-lē, -ˌsen-; ˌkän(t)-sən-ˈtrā-\ adverb

—

concentrative

play \ˈkän(t)-sən-ˌtrā-tiv, -ˌsen-\ adjective

See concentrate defined for English-language learners

See concentrate defined for kids

Examples of concentrate in a Sentence

All that noise makes it hard to concentrate.
The student has difficulty concentrating.
The sauce should be simmered for a few minutes to concentrate its flavors.

Recent Examples of concentrate from the Web

Critics charge Orban with weakening the democratic system of checks and balances and greatly concentrating power.

— Fox News, "Hungary's Viktor Orban to make 'significant changes' in govt," 10 Apr. 2018
Critics charge Orban with weakening the democratic system of checks and balances, enriching a new oligarch class of cronies with the help of funds from the European Union and greatly concentrating power.

— Washington Post, "Hungary’s Viktor Orban to make ‘significant changes’ in govt," 10 Apr. 2018
Logan’s air-traffic noise has been an issue for decades, but complaints jumped after 2013, when GPS technology steered jets into Boston over narrower approach areas, concentrating more traffic over certain residential areas.

— adam vaccaro, BostonGlobe.com, "Jets may be rerouted away from Hull to ease noise," 9 Apr. 2018
Gerrymandering can be achieved by concentrating a minority party’s votes into one district and/or scattering them across multiple districts.

— matt ford, The New Republic, "Can the U.S. Supreme Court Stop Gerrymandering?," 28 Mar. 2018
The Concho and Exxon moves are part of a broad trend in the industry, which is shifting and concentrating investments in Texas and New Mexico, and from natural gas to oil.

— clifford krauss, New York Times, "$9.5 Billion Purchase by Concho Is Latest Sign of West Texas Oil Boom," 28 Mar. 2018
Second came farming, which converted and concentrated solar energy into food, freeing people for pursuits other than sustenance.

— paul voosen, Science | AAAS, "Meet Vaclav Smil, the man who has quietly shaped how the world thinks about energy," 21 Mar. 2018
And one of Hawley’s biggest campaign donors has been Peter Thiel, the venture capitalist and conservative bomb-thrower who’s criticized Google’s concentrated power.

— Bloomberg.com, "Google Should Be Worried About This Possible Missouri Lawsuit," 8 Mar. 2018
In Europe and Asia, domestication of draft animals beginning around 10,000 years ago let some landowners cultivate ever larger areas, further concentrating wealth.

— matthew shaer, Smithsonian, "The Archaeology of Wealth Inequality," 22 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'concentrate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of concentrate

com- + Latin centrum center

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1628

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

See Words from the same year

concentrate Synonyms

Phrases

get together;

concentrate

noun

Definition of concentrate

1 : something concentrated: such as

a : a mineral-rich product obtained after an initial processing of ore

b : a food reduced in bulk by elimination of fluid

orange juice concentrate

2 : a feedstuff (such as grains) relatively rich in digestible nutrients — compare fiber

See concentrate defined for English-language learners

Examples of concentrate in a Sentence

a frozen orange juice concentrate
Is this orange juice fresh or is it made from concentrate?

Recent Examples of concentrate from the Web

Moxie specializes in a concentrate known colloquially as live resin.

— robbie gonzalez, WIRED, "Shatter, Batter, Wax: How Cannabis Extracts Come to Be," 22 Mar. 2018
Since mid-February, six dispensaries have been selling highly processed — and pricey — concentrates, pills and tinctures.

— sam wood, Philly.com, "Pa. marijuana panel recommends sale of smokable marijuana," 6 Mar. 2018
Dip rims of 4 glasses in concentrate and then in salt.

— Country Living, "Orange-Ginger Margarita," 24 May 2012
Frozen concentrate orange juice, developed soon after World War II, promised to save housewives hours of domestic labor.

— andrew furman, WSJ, "The Orange Is the Apple of My Eye," 22 Mar. 2018
And the thing is, nobody knows if the byproducts of concentrates vaporized at one temperature are more or less harmful than the byproducts of flower burned at a higher temperature, because, well, nobody's studied it.

— robbie gonzalez, WIRED, "Shatter, Batter, Wax: How Cannabis Extracts Come to Be," 22 Mar. 2018
The process involves drawing blood, spinning it in a centrifuge to isolate the platelet concentrate, and then injecting that back into the scalp.

— priya rao, Vogue, "How to Deal With Post-Pregnancy Hair Loss, According to the Experts," 19 Mar. 2018
The cold brew line represents a new phase for the company, which had been offering cold brew products in concentrate form for about a year.

— william thornton, AL.com, "Royal Cup Coffee to unveil new ready-to-drink cold brew line," 19 Mar. 2018
Make Frosting: Beat cream cheese and apple juice concentrate with a mixer just until smooth.

— woman's day staff, Woman's Day, "Apple Cupcakes," 31 Dec. 2011

Origin and Etymology of concentrate

see ¹concentrate

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1871

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

Other Food Terms

Reuben, calamari, chuck, curry, edamame, foie gras, hummus, leaven, nonpareil, peel

CONCENTRATE Defined for English Language Learners

concentrate

verb

Definition of concentrate for English Language Learners

: to think about something : to give your attention to the thing you are doing, reading, etc.
: to cause (attention, efforts, strength, etc.) to be used or directed for a single purpose
: to make (something, such as a liquid) stronger by removing water

concentrate

noun

Definition of concentrate for English Language Learners

: a substance that is made stronger or more pure by removing water

CONCENTRATE Defined for Kids

concentrate

verb con·cen·trate \ ˈkän-sən-ˌtrāt \

Definition of concentrate for Students

concentrated; concentrating

1 : to focus thought or attention on something

2 : to bring or come to or direct toward a common center

Moonlight seemed to concentrate upon the highly-polished steel dome …
—Brian Jacques, Redwall

3 : to make stronger or thicker by removing something (as water)

Simmer the sauce to concentrate its flavors.

Medical Dictionary

concentrate

verb con·cen·trate \ ˈkän(t)-sən-ˌtrāt, -ˌsen- \

medical Definition of concentrate

concentrated; concentrating

transitive verb

1 a : to bring or direct toward a common center or objective : focus

b : to accumulate (a toxic substance) in bodily tissues

fish concentrate mercury

2 : to make less dilute

concentrate syrup

intransitive verb

: to fix one's powers, efforts, or attention on one thing

concentrate on a problem

—

concentrator

play \-ˌtrāt-ər\ noun

concentrate

noun

medical Definition of concentrate

: something prepared by concentration; especially : a food reduced in bulk by elimination of fluid

orange juice concentrate

Learn More about concentrate

See words that rhyme with concentrate Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for concentrate Spanish Central: Translation of concentrate Nglish: Translation of concentrate for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of concentrate for Arabic speakers

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concentrate

Definition of concentrate

concentratedly

concentrative

Examples of concentrate in a Sentence

Recent Examples of concentrate from the Web

Origin and Etymology of concentrate

concentrate Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

Phrases

concentrate

Definition of concentrate

Examples of concentrate in a Sentence

Recent Examples of concentrate from the Web

Origin and Etymology of concentrate

Other Food Terms

Phrases Related to CONCENTRATE

Related Phrases

CONCENTRATE Defined for English Language Learners

concentrate

Definition of concentrate for English Language Learners

concentrate

Definition of concentrate for English Language Learners

CONCENTRATE Defined for Kids

concentrate

Definition of concentrate for Students

Medical Dictionary

concentrate

medical Definition of concentrate

concentrator

concentrate

medical Definition of concentrate

Learn More about concentrate

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