desiccates

verb

present tense third-person singular of desiccate
1
as in undermines
to deprive of emotional or intellectual vitality that historian's dryasdust prose desiccates what is actually an exciting period in European history

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dries
to make dry add a cup of desiccated coconut to the mix

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for desiccates
  1. undermines
  2. dries
  3. weakens
  4. drains
  5. petrifies
  6. exhausts
  7. dehydrates
  8. wears
Verb
  • Trade secret law is more promising for methodology kept genuinely confidential, though the publicity of the legal system undermines most such claims.
    — Hamid Kohan, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026
  • But our current electronic monitoring system undermines those goals when it is used as a substitute for detention of dangerous defendants.
    — Eileen Burke, Chicago Tribune, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of undermines
Verb
  • Get out to the garden right after the dew dries at least every other day to keep your summer vegetables producing for as long as possible.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Even though cement is in the name, this glue still dries clear on surfaces.
    — BestReviews, Mercury News, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of dries
Verb
  • The use of noble language to describe a process that weakens constitutional guardrails only widens the disconnect between words and actions.
    — Yuripzy Morgan, Baltimore Sun, 20 Aug. 2026
  • The erosion of those countries’ industrial capacity ultimately weakens their ability to compete with and resist China economically, diplomatically, and militarily.
    — Bill Cassidy, Foreign Affairs, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of weakens
Verb
  • Defensiveness extends conversations, weakens credibility and drains emotional energy that could have been directed toward solving problems.
    — Rodger Dean Duncan, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Every square inch of land on Earth’s surface receives precipitation, and much of it drains out, eventually, to an ocean or lake.
    — Natalie Wolchover, Quanta Magazine, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of drains
Verb
  • Here, a source of primordial terror—the gaze that petrifies—is deflected by way of the highly polished shield that Perseus wields against the creature.
    — Jan Tumlir, Artforum, 5 Aug. 2026
  • The former slingshots between harmony and hysteria; the latter petrifies its beauty under a haze of ashy gray powder.
    — Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 28 Nov. 2025
Definition of petrifies
Verb
  • If a bureaucratic process exhausts whatever time a citizen has available, then benefits are lost or rights are denied.
    — Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2026
  • That’s because even ordinary winds – and far worse, storms and earthquakes – cause tall buildings to sway, which ruins people’s concentration, wrecks their mood, and even exhausts them.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 24 July 2026
Definition of exhausts
Verb
  • Despite the belief that coffee dehydrates you, experts say moderate coffee consumption can contribute to your daily water intake.
    — Olivia McIntosh, Martha Stewart, 20 July 2026
  • Alcohol worsens sleep quality and dehydrates the body, while caffeine has a diuretic effect that encourages fluid loss and can raise body temperature.
    — Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of dehydrates
Verb
  • Granted, save for one image on a TV screen, no one wears a Green Lantern mask or outfit in the Lanterns pilot, but the wheels of its story have been in motion for decades by the time its premise unfolds.
    — Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Sadie Sink plays Jean Grey as a Gen Zer malcontent who wears a hoodie and whose affect suggests a steady diet of Sylvia Plath.
    — Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of wears
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Desiccates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desiccates. Accessed 23 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on desiccates

Nglish: Translation of desiccates for Spanish Speakers

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