disintegrate

verb

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

disintegrated; disintegrating; disintegrates

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 sense 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 sense 2) an atomic nucleus that disintegrates because of radioactivity

Other Words from disintegrate More Example Sentences Learn More about disintegrate

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Other Words from disintegrate

disintegration \ (ˌ)dis-ˌin-tə-ˈgrā-shən

\ noun

disintegrative \ (ˌ)dis-ˈin-tə-ˌgrā-tiv

\ adjective

disintegrator \ -ˌgrā-tər

\ noun

Examples of disintegrate in a Sentence

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

Recent Examples on the Web

Yoshino blossoms tend to break apart into individual petals rather quickly, which blow away and disintegrate into the ground. — Kevin Ambrose, Washington Post, "Kwanzan cherry trees are exploding in pink — but they are such a mess," 7 May 2018 Khan, however, warned that a withdrawal of troops without an agreement that recognizes Afghanistan’s stakeholders risks disintegrating into violence. — Kathy Gannon, The Seattle Times, "Powerful political leader warns against squandering peace," 20 Feb. 2019 People ruin communities by adding rules to them, and punk could disintegrate into a conformist list of rules that were punk and not punk. — Rob Ledonne, Billboard, "John Cameron Mitchell on Directing His Wild Sci-Fi Punk Opus 'How to Talk to Girls at Parties'," 30 May 2018 The protesters stood outside the International Boulevard entrance holding signs, some of which disintegrated in the rain, and chanted as passing drivers honked in support. — Asia Fields, The Seattle Times, "Federal employees rally outside Sea-Tac Airport to push for end of shutdown," 22 Jan. 2019 The video ends with Lonsdale disintegrating, while a glowing rainbow heart remains behind. — Stephen Daw, Billboard, "Keiynan Lonsdale Embraces the Light & Dark of Himself in New Video for 'Preach': Watch," 29 June 2018 Cease-fires intermittently take hold but always disintegrate over time. — David L. Stern, Washington Post, "War in eastern Ukraine now seems a distant storm to Kiev," 26 June 2018 My sense of myself as part of a community of black writers disintegrated before me. — Ta-nehisi Coates, The Atlantic, "I’m Not Black, I’m Kanye," 7 May 2018 The meme was so easy to understand because it was based in a universal language — this sad moment isn’t as sad when characters are disintegrating. — Verge Staff, The Verge, "The best memes of 2018, according to The Verge staff," 27 Dec. 2018

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.