vaporize

verb

va·​por·​ize ˈvā-pə-ˌrīz 

vaporized; vaporizing

transitive verb

1

: to convert (as by the application of heat or by spraying) into vapor

2

: to cause to become dissipated

3

: to destroy by or as if by converting into vapor

a tank vaporized by a shell

intransitive verb

1

: to become vaporized

2

: vapor sense 2

vaporizable

ˈvā-pə-ˌrī-zə-bəl 

adjective

vaporization

ˌvā-pər-ə-ˈzā-shən 

noun

Synonyms

• annihilate
• cream
• decimate
• demolish
• desolate
• destroy
• devastate
• do in
• extinguish
• nuke
• pull down
• pulverize
• raze
• rub out
• ruin
• shatter
• smash
• tear down
• total
• waste
• wrack
• wreck

Examples of vaporize in a Sentence

Heat is used to vaporize the liquid.

Pressure causes the chemical to vaporize.

Recent Examples on the Web

The comet reached its perihelion on Monday at 7:30 a.m. ET and was completely vaporized after passing within 1% of Earth’s distance from the sun, less than 1 million miles (1.5 million kilometers) away from the star, according to NASA. —Taylor Nicioli, CNN, 30 Oct. 2024

In 1952, the United States vaporized an entire island in the Pacific’s Enewetak Atoll with a hydrogen bomb. —Salama Udaipurwala, JSTOR Daily, 30 Oct. 2024

The rest was vaporized or otherwise destroyed by the blast. —Ross Andersen, The Atlantic, 24 Oct. 2024

Billions of Comets If an Oort Cloud object finds its way to the inner solar system, its ices vaporize. —James Wray, Discover Magazine, 18 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

vapor entry 1 + -ize

First Known Use

1803, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

vaporize

verb

va·​por·​ize ˈvā-pə-ˌrīz 

vaporized; vaporizing

: to turn from a liquid or solid into vapor

vaporization

ˌvā-pə-rə-ˈzā-shən 

noun

Medical Definition

vaporize

verb

va·​por·​ize

variants also British vaporise

ˈvā-pə-ˌrīz 

vaporized also British vaporised; vaporizing also British vaporising

transitive verb

: to convert from a liquid or solid into a vapor

vaporized plaque in an artery with laser treatment

intransitive verb

: to become vaporized

vaporizable adjective

also British vaporisable

-ˌrī-zə-bəl