evaporate

1 of 2

verb

evap·​o·​rate i-ˈva-p(ə-)ˌrāt 

evaporated; evaporating

transitive verb

1

a

: to convert into vapor

also : to dissipate or draw off in vapor or fumes

b

: to deposit (a substance, such as a metal) in the form of a film by sublimation

2

a

: to expel moisture from

b

: expel

evaporate electrons from a hot wire

intransitive verb

1

a

: to pass off in vapor or in minute particles

b(1)

: to pass off or away : disappear

her ardor evaporated

(2)

: to diminish quickly

2

: to give forth vapor

evaporative

i-ˈva-pə-ˌrā-tiv 

adjective

evaporator

i-ˈva-pə-ˌrā-tər 

noun

evaporator

2 of 2

noun

evap·​o·​ra·​tor ə̇ˈvapəˌrātə(r) 

ēˈ-, 

-ātə-

plural -s

: one that evaporates: such as

a

: a workman in charge of an evaporation process

b

: a usually closed apparatus for driving off superfluous liquid (as in a concentration plant for sugar and syrup) or for evaporating liquid for subsequent condensation to purify it (as from salts held in solution)

c

: the part of a refrigeration system in which cooling is produced by evaporation of the liquid refrigerant

d

: a kiln for evaporating

Synonyms of evaporate

Verb

• disappear
• vanish
• fade
• melt

Examples of evaporate in a Sentence

Verb

Let the liquid start to evaporate.

The heat evaporated the water.

The opportunity evaporated before he could act on it.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The smallest of these would have evaporated quickly, disappearing from the cosmos long ago. — Jonathan O'Callaghan, Scientific American, 2 Oct. 2026

Anyone who regularly follows dark matter news knows that past tantalizing anomalies evaporated as more data came in. — ArsTechnica, 2 Oct. 2026

Scalding criticism evaporates like steam back into an atmosphere that police command. — Sophie Landres, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026

Conventional pipelines for selling and showing design were stagnating, and heritage manufacturer contracts had evaporated. — Adrian Madlener, Curbed, 30 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Latin evaporatus, past participle of evaporare, from e- + vapor steam, vapor

First Known Use

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Rhymes for evaporate

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• accumulate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate

Kids Definition

evaporate

verb

evap·​o·​rate i-ˈvap-ə-ˌrāt 

evaporated; evaporating

1

: to pass off or cause to pass off into vapor from a liquid state

2

: to pass off or away : disappear

felt the excitement evaporate

3

: to remove some of the water from (as by heating)

evaporator

-ˌrāt-ər 

noun