disintegrate

[ dis-in-tuh-greyt ]
/ dɪsˈɪn təˌgreɪt /

verb (used without object), dis·in·te·grat·ed, dis·in·te·grat·ing.

to separate into parts or lose intactness or solidness; break up; deteriorate: The old book is gradually disintegrating with age.
Physics.
  1. to decay.
  2. (of a nucleus) to change into one or more different nuclei after being bombarded by high-energy particles, as alpha particles or gamma rays.

verb (used with object), dis·in·te·grat·ed, dis·in·te·grat·ing.

to reduce to particles, fragments, or parts; break up or destroy the cohesion of: Rocks are disintegrated by frost and rain.

Origin of disintegrate

First recorded in 1790–1800; dis-1 + integrate

synonym study for disintegrate

1, 3. See decay.

OTHER WORDS FROM disintegrate

dis·in·te·gra·ble [dis-in-tuh-gruh-buh l] /dɪsˈɪn tə grə bəl/, adjective dis·in·te·gra·tive, dis·in·te·gra·to·ry [dis-in-tuh-gruh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee, -grey-tuh-ree] /dɪsˈɪn tə grəˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i, -ˌgreɪ tə ri/, adjective dis·in·te·gra·tor, noun non·dis·in·te·grat·ing, adjective

Example sentences from the Web for disintegrate

British Dictionary definitions for disintegrate

disintegrate
/ (dɪsˈɪntɪˌɡreɪt) /

verb

to break or be broken into fragments or constituent parts; shatter
to lose or cause to lose cohesion or unity
(intr) to lose judgment or control; deteriorate
physics
  1. to induce or undergo nuclear fission, as by bombardment with fast particles
  2. another word for decay (def. 3)

Derived forms of disintegrate

disintegrable, adjective disintegration, noun disintegrative, adjective disintegrator, noun