disintegrate

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verb dis·in·te·grate \ (ˌ)dis-ˈin-tə-ˌgrāt \

Definition of disintegrate

transitive verb

1 :to break or decompose into constituent elements, parts, or small particles

water disintegrates the limestone

2 :to destroy the unity or integrity (see integrity 3) of

The lies disintegrated their marriage.

intransitive verb

1 :to break or separate into constituent elements or parts

The iron hinges were disintegrateing into dust.

2 :to lose unity or integrity by or as if by breaking into parts

The relationship started to disintegrate.

3 :to undergo a change in composition (see composition 2)

an atomic nucleus that disintegrates because of radioactivity

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disintegration

play \(ˌ)dis-ˌin-tə-ˈgrā-shən\ noun

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disintegrative

play \(ˌ)dis-ˈin-tə-ˌgrā-tiv\ adjective

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disintegrator

play \-ˌgrā-tər\ noun

See disintegrate defined for English-language learners

See disintegrate defined for kids

Examples of disintegrate in a Sentence

The paper will disintegrate if it gets wet.
The laser can disintegrate most kinds of rock.

Recent Examples of disintegrate from the Web

In a slight change from the books, Nagini’s death ends with her disintegrating into thin air rather than falling to the ground.

— peggy truong, Cosmopolitan, "11 Quality Snake Moments in Pop Culture History," 24 Aug. 2017
Etling swiped the starting spot from the old Danny Etling, who somehow threw for more than 2,100 yards last season while back pain disintegrated his throwing mechanics and left him with the mobilty of a zombie.

— ron higgins, NOLA.com, "New painfree QB Danny Etling beats out old painfilled Danny Etling for LSU starting spot," 23 Aug. 2017
The next eclipse will be in this distant year — assuming that the world hasn’t been destroyed or that the sun hasn’t vanished in a disintegrating flash.

— philip bump, Washington Post, "Our eclipse has long been an awesome marker of a distant American future," 21 Aug. 2017
For every Crosby Stills & Nash that has performed for decades, there is a Blind Faith that made one record and disintegrated after one tour.

— bill thompson, Cincinnati.com, "I’m With Her makes collaboration sound great," 8 Aug. 2017
On one side, a full skeleton still stained brown and black from disintegrating flesh is laid out on a sheet.

— benjamin preston, Fortune, "A 9-Day Journey Along the Most Controversial Strip of Land in Trump’s America," 24 July 2017
As our nation’s political situation disintegrated, so did our relationship.

— jen doll, Longreads, "Flying Solo," 22 July 2017
There are fears, however, that the shelf could in future share the fate of its neighbour, Larsen B, which disintegrated entirely within a few weeks in 2002.

— The Economist, "Politics this week," 13 July 2017
If the ice shelf were to continue to disintegrate, this ice might flow more rapidly into the sea.

— ben estes, NOLA.com, "An iceberg the size of Delaware is about to break off of Antarctica," 5 July 2017

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