amalgamate

verb

amal·​gam·​ate ə-ˈmal-gə-ˌmāt 

amalgamated; amalgamating

transitive verb

: to unite in or as if in an amalgam

especially : to merge into a single body

They amalgamated the hospital with the university.

amalgamator

ə-ˈmal-gə-ˌmā-tər 

noun

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Amalgamate Can Be Used Technically and Generally

The noun amalgam derives, by way of Middle French, from Medieval Latin amalgama. It was first used in the 15th century with the meaning "a mixture of mercury and another metal." (Today, you are likely to encounter this sense in the field of dentistry; amalgams can be used for filling holes in teeth.) Use of amalgam broadened over time to include any mixture of elements, and by the 18th century the word was also being applied figuratively, as in "an amalgam of citizens." The verb amalgamate has been in use since the latter half of the 1500s. It too can be used either technically, implying the creation of an alloy of mercury, or more generally for the formation of any compound or combined entity.

Synonyms

• blend
• combine
• comingle
• commingle
• commix
• composite
• concrete
• conflate
• fuse
• homogenize
• immingle
• immix
• incorporate
• integrate
• interfuse
• intermingle
• intermix
• meld
• merge
• mingle
• mix

Choose the Right Synonym for amalgamate

mix, mingle, commingle, blend, merge, coalesce, amalgamate, fuse mean to combine into a more or less uniform whole.

mix may or may not imply loss of each element's identity.

mix the salad greens

mix a drink

mingle usually suggests that the elements are still somewhat distinguishable or separately active.

fear mingled with anticipation in my mind

commingle implies a closer or more thorough mingling.

a sense of duty commingled with a fierce pride drove her

blend implies that the elements as such disappear in the resulting mixture.

blended several teas to create a balanced flavor

merge suggests a combining in which one or more elements are lost in the whole.

in his mind reality and fantasy merged

coalesce implies an affinity in the merging elements and usually a resulting organic unity.

telling details that coalesce into a striking portrait

amalgamate implies the forming of a close union without complete loss of individual identities.

refugees who were readily amalgamated into the community

fuse stresses oneness and indissolubility of the resulting product.

a building in which modernism and classicism are fused

Examples of amalgamate in a Sentence

amalgamating different styles of music

They amalgamated the hospital and the university.

Recent Examples on the Web

But out of challenges came creative solutions, like amalgamating five different warehouses to create the massive fulfilment centre Aurora works in. —Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 6 Sep. 2024

One promising way to amalgamate this kind of data is through the establishment of a national Bureau of Cyber Statistics. —Raj M. Shah, Foreign Affairs, 13 Jan. 2022

Iran’s model for operating abroad draws from its experiences in Lebanon in the early 1980s, when the regime amalgamated a variety of Shia parties into Hezbollah. —Ray Takeyh, Foreign Affairs, 15 Nov. 2015

Get this: the Giants’ plan to game the system and amalgamate a bunch of part-time guys in the hopes of receiving quality full-time production didn’t stand up to the scrutiny of six months and 162 games. —Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin amalgamātus, past participle of amalgamāre "to combine (a metal) with mercury," verbal derivative of amalgama amalgam

First Known Use

1576, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

amalgamate

verb

amal·​gam·​ate ə-ˈmal-gə-ˌmāt 

amalgamated; amalgamating

1

: to unite in an amalgam

2

: to combine into a single body : merge

Medical Definition

amalgamate

transitive verb

amal·​gam·​ate ə-ˈmal-gə-ˌmāt 

amalgamated; amalgamating

: to unite in or as if in an amalgam

especially : to merge into a single body

amalgamation

-ˌmal-gə-ˈmā-shən 

noun

amalgamator

-ˈmal-gə-ˌmāt-ər 

noun