as in rusting
to combine chemically with oxygen
Iron will oxidize if it is exposed to air and moisture.
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Recent Examples of oxidizing
In the hole, life drops away quickly as oxygen disappears, below the surface (Oxic Zone) and transition levels (Suboxic Zone); at 100-140 m (330-460 ft), the third layer called the Anoxic Zone I is almost completely dominated by sulfur-oxidizing bacteria.
—
New Atlas, 28 Dec. 2025
Those flies themselves depend on sulfur-oxidizing microbes as their primary food source.
—Humberto Basilio, Scientific American, 7 Nov. 2025
What's more, the oxidizing process would simply start again, and the entire structure would turn green again in a few short years.
—Theo Burman, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
Looking ahead, the team plans to add protective coatings to enable the device to survive open-air use without oxidizing.
—Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2025
Today, the entire industrialized world is held up by the energy released by oxidizing organic carbon back to CO2.
—Peter Brannen, Big Think, 28 Aug. 2025
New Atlas, 28 Dec. 2025
Those flies themselves depend on sulfur-oxidizing microbes as their primary food source.
—Humberto Basilio, Scientific American, 7 Nov. 2025
What's more, the oxidizing process would simply start again, and the entire structure would turn green again in a few short years.
—Theo Burman, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
Looking ahead, the team plans to add protective coatings to enable the device to survive open-air use without oxidizing.
—Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2025
Today, the entire industrialized world is held up by the energy released by oxidizing organic carbon back to CO2.
—Peter Brannen, Big Think, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for oxidizing
Verb
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These prevent the tank itself from rusting and, if the rods are corroded, chances are your tank’s walls are next.—
Caroline Lubinsky,
Martha Stewart,
17 Feb. 2026
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Due to its strength, contact with even a diluted bleach solution can cause pitting (localized, severe corrosion causing small holes) and rusting on blades.—
Andy Wilcox,
Better Homes & Gardens,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Funk assures that the softened, decomposing cardboard will allow plants to grow through.—
Patricia Shannon,
Southern Living,
9 Feb. 2026
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Jon Hallford, a southern Colorado funeral home owner who stashed nearly 200 decomposing bodies and gave families fake ashes, was sentenced on state charges on Friday.—
Maria Braganini,
CBS News,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Here is what to know about how Americans are reacting to Trump overall.—
Kinsey Crowley,
USA Today,
18 Feb. 2026
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The 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles will feature both men’s and women’s flag football, the NFL just began sponsorship for a new women’s flag league and NCAA Power 4 programs are reacting fast, many soon to be offering up scholarships for competition.—
Chris Hays,
The Orlando Sentinel,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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By 2019, Virginia photographer John Plashal caught wind of what was disintegrating on Hankins' out-of-the-way acres.—
Danielle Paquette The Washington Post,
Arkansas Online,
17 Feb. 2026
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Around the world, states were disintegrating, climate systems were approaching tipping points, economies were stagnating, and inequality was rising.—
Billy Perrigo,
Time,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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When a production crew arrives to film an alien invasion movie on the crumbling backlot, the janitor decides to vanish alongside the studio itself.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
15 Feb. 2026
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With increasing pressure on its energy systems, Cuba is crumbling as energy blackouts throughout the nation have significantly affected its vital tourism industry, food supply and prices, and public and personal transportation.—
Molly Parks,
The Washington Examiner,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
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As the song progresses, more elements—slow-moving filter sweeps, waltzing arpeggios, a deep and doomy bassline—appear and disappear, moving into the fore of the stereo field before corroding and flaking away.—
Dash Lewis,
Pitchfork,
29 Jan. 2026
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In the 1980s, I was impressed by Neil Postman’s book Amusing Ourselves to Death, which argued that television was corroding American society and democracy.—
Hillary Rodham Clinton,
The Atlantic,
29 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Oxidizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/oxidizing. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
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