dissipate

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verb dis·si·pate \ ˈdi-sə-ˌpāt \

Definition of dissipate

dissipated; dissipating

transitive verb

1 a :to break up and drive off

dissipate a crowd

b :to cause to spread thin or scatter and gradually vanish

one's sympathy is eventually dissipated
—Andrew Feinberg

c physics :to lose (heat, electricity, etc.) irrecoverably

2 :to spend or use up wastefully or foolishly

dissipated the family fortune in reckless business ventures

intransitive verb

1 :to break up and scatter or vanish

The clouds dissipated and the sun came out.

The team's early momentum has dissipated.

2 :to be extravagant or dissolute in the pursuit of pleasure; especially :to drink to excess

his extended dissipating of the night before

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dissipater

noun

See dissipate defined for English-language learners

See dissipate defined for kids

Examples of dissipate in a Sentence

The morning sun dissipated the fog.
The fog should dissipate soon.

Recent Examples of dissipate from the Web

The helmet could have helped Corythoraptor regulate its body temperature, spaces inside the crest helping to dissipate heat.

— brian switek, Scientific American Blog Network, "Paleo Profile: The Crested Thief," 4 Aug. 2017
And if his reform fails, the confidence he’s engendered among investors may dissipate.

— angeline benoit, Bloomberg.com, "Macron Vows Millionaire Minister Will Cut Worker Protection," 3 Aug. 2017
The utility alerted the public to the spike, which later dissipated.

— bruce henderson, charlotteobserver, "Advocates say Charlotte’s water could make you sick. It’s safe and reliable, city says.," 26 July 2017
Fan-fueled fears that Missouri football was lagging behind during the 2018 recruiting cycle dissipated during a weekend that featured five new commitments.

— tod palmer, kansascity, "Mizzou football recruiting picks up steam around Night at the Zou camp," 24 July 2017
The crushing force also dissipates additional energy at a rate that's 50 percent better than EPS by releasing heat during the process.

— tim newcomb, Popular Mechanics, "A lot goes into safeguarding your melon.," 14 July 2017
The compressed springs capture and hold on to the energy that would otherwise be dissipated.

— kyle frischkorn, Smithsonian, "New Assistive Stairs Put a Spring in Your Step," 13 July 2017
For the time being, the the National Hurricane Center predicts that Tropical Depression Four will maintain its weak intensity over the next 48 hours before dissipating by Saturday or Sunday.

— angela fritz, Washington Post, "A weak Tropical Depression Four is tracking west toward the Bahamas," 6 July 2017
Still, heightened tensions haven’t dissipated, sources said.

— paresh dave, Philly.com, "Loot Crate became the nation's fastest-growing startup, then it laid off over a quarter of its staff," 5 July 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of dissipate

Latin dissipatus, past participle of dissipare, dissupare, from dis- + supare to throw

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

dissipate Synonyms

Synonyms

clear out, disband, dispel, disperse, scatter, squander

Antonyms

assemble, cluster, collect, concentrate, congregate, gather, ingather

Related Words

break up, isolate, part, segregate, separate, split (up); diffuse, disseminate, diverge, spread

Near Antonyms

agglutinate, conglomerate; unify, unite

Synonym Discussion of dissipate

scatter, disperse, dissipate, dispel mean to cause to separate or break up. scatter implies a force that drives parts or units irregularly in many directions.

- the bowling ball scattered the pins

disperse implies a wider separation and a complete breaking up of a mass or group.

- police dispersed the crowd

dissipate stresses complete disintegration or dissolution and final disappearance.

- the fog was dissipated by the morning sun

dispel stresses a driving away or getting rid of as if by scattering.

- an authoritative statement that dispelled all doubt

DISSIPATE Defined for English Language Learners

dissipate

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verb

Definition of dissipate for English Language Learners

: to cause (something) to spread out and disappear
: to separate into parts and disappear or go away
: to use all or a lot of (something, such as money or time) in a foolish way

DISSIPATE Defined for Kids

dissipate

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verb dis·si·pate \ ˈdi-sə-ˌpāt \

Definition of dissipate for Students

dissipated; dissipating

1 :to cause to break up and disappear:disperse

The wind dissipated the clouds.

2 :to scatter or waste foolishly :squander

He dissipated his saved allowance.

Law Dictionary

dissipate

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transitive verb dis·si·pate \ ˈdi-sə-ˌpāt \

legal Definition of dissipate

dissipated; dissipating

:to use (marital assets) for one's own benefit and to the exclusion of one's spouse for a purpose unrelated to the marriage at a time when the marriage is undergoing an irretrievable breakdown

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