dilute
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English
Etymology
From Latin dīlūtus, from dīluere (“to wash away, dissolve, cause to melt, dilute”), from dī-, dis- (“away, apart”) + luere (“to wash”). See lave, and compare deluge.
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /daɪˈljuːt/
Audio (Southern England) (file)
- (US) IPA(key): /daɪˈlut/, /dɪˈlut/
- Rhymes: -uːt
Verb
dilute (third-person singular simple present dilutes, present participle diluting, simple past and past participle diluted)
- (transitive) To make thinner by adding solvent to a solution, especially by adding water.
- 1712, Richard Blackmore, Creation: A Philosophical Poem:
- Mix their watery store / With the chyle's current, and dilute it more.
- (transitive) To weaken, especially by adding a foreign substance.
- 1704, I[saac] N[ewton], “ ”, in Opticks: Or, A Treatise of the Reflexions, Refractions, Inflexions and Colours of Light. , London: Sam Smith, and Benj Walford, printers to the Royal Society, , →OCLC, page 36:
- For if these Colours be diluted and weakened by the Mixture of any adventitious light, the distance between the places of the Paper will not be so great.
- 1856, L. S. Lavenu, chapter XXXIII, in Erlesmere; or, Contrasts of Character, volume 1, London: Smith, Elder & Co., page 336:
- “Stay a little.”
“Not another second: language and discussion dilute thought; I will say no more.”
- 1980 August 30, Jil Clark, quoting Jane, “Gays Talk About Registration and the Draft”, in Gay Community News, volume 8, number 6, page 9:
- It's healthy to have people in the military who would perhaps rather be somewhere else; they can dilute the more gung-ho military types.
- (transitive, stock market) To cause the value of individual shares or the stake of a shareholder to decrease by increasing the total number of shares.
- (intransitive) To become attenuated, thin, or weak.
- It dilutes easily.
Antonyms
Related terms
Translations
to add more of a solvent to a solution; especially to add more water
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to weaken
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Adjective
dilute (comparative more dilute, superlative most dilute)
- Having a low concentration.
- Clean the panel with a dilute, neutral cleaner.
- Weak; reduced in strength by dilution; diluted.
- Of an animal: having a lighter-coloured coat than is usual.
- a dilute calico
- a cat with a dilute tortoiseshell coat
Derived terms
Translations
having a low concentration
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weak
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Noun
dilute (plural dilutes)
- An animal having a lighter-coloured coat than is usual.
- 2000, Joe Stahlkuppe, American Pit Bull Terrier Handbook, page 131:
- On average, blues and other dilutes have weaker coats and skin problems seem more prevalent in the dilutes.
See also
Concentration on Wikipedia.Wikipedia - dilate
References
- “dilute”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “dilute”, in The Century Dictionary , New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
Latin
Participle
dīlūte