defuse

play

verb de·fuse \(ˌ)dē-ˈfyüz\

Definition of defuse

transitive verb
1 : to remove the fuse from (a mine, a bomb. etc.)
2 : to make less harmful, potent, or tense defuse a crisis

See defuse defined for English-language learners

Examples of defuse in a Sentence

Skilled negotiators helped defuse the crisis.

Recent Examples of defuse from the Web

Authorities tried Thursday to defuse complaints about potential business disruption.

— joe mcdonald, The Seattle Times, "China postpones portion of cybersecurity law", 31 May 2017
Back channels helped defuse the Cuban Missile Crisis, too.

— peter grier, The Christian Science Monitor, "Kushner flap: A brief history of back channels", 30 May 2017
The guys came to her defense and Cox tried to defuse the situation.

— sandra baker, star-telegram, "A day after he graduated from high school, he was killed in a drive-by shooting", 29 May 2017
To defuse the scandal, the European Union stepped in to help the four main political parties — the conservative VMRO-DPMNE, the Social Democrats, and two small ethnic Albanian parties — negotiate next steps.

— sarah wilson sokhey, Washington Post, "This is why the West should pay attention to the drama in Macedonia", 29 May 2017
The government has tolerated some protests but tries to defuse demonstrations and block criticism of senior party leaders.

— javier c. hernÁndez, New York Times, "Greed, Injustice and Decadence: What 5 Scenes From a Hit TV Show Say About China", 27 May 2017
Sloss, the South Pasadena resident, has taken classes that have taught him to better communicate with his parents and defuse confrontational behavior.

— emily bazar, sacbee, "Caring for a loved one? Care for yourself, too", 25 May 2017
Earlier in the year, Google also apologized to a Chinese authors’ group over its scanning of books by local writers into an online search system, moving to defuse copyright concerns around the project in China.

— network world staff, WIRED, "Biggest Tech Industry Apologies of 2010 (So Far)", 26 June 2010

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

1943

First Known Use of defuse

1943

DEFUSE Defined for English Language Learners

defuse

play

verb

Definition of defuse for English Language Learners

: to make (something) less serious, difficult, or tense
: to remove the part of (an explosive) that makes it explode : to remove the fuse from (an explosive)