disintegrating 1 of 2

adjective

as in decaying

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disintegrating

2 of 2

verb

present participle of disintegrate
1
as in decomposing
to go through decomposition fallen leaves slowly disintegrate over the course of the winter

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in grinding
to reduce to fine particles modern air pollution is gradually disintegrating the ancient temple's irreplaceable friezes

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3
as in disrupting
to cause to separate into pieces usually suddenly or forcibly a tornado disintegrated the building in a matter of seconds

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of disintegrating
Verb
Scott’s face, in this shot, is a whole novel, disintegrating into tears before being shored up again, eventually rearranged into something resembling a welcoming smile that teeters on the edge of collapse. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 15 Sep. 2026 The 110-floor south tower, struck shortly after the north tower by another plane, was disintegrating. — Diane Herbst, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2026 His relationship with his wife (Anna Faris) and kids is disintegrating and a National Enquirer journo keeps threatening to run an exposé of his infidelities. — Jessica Kiang, Variety, 5 Sep. 2026 With all the rain from storms recently, our streets and roads are disintegrating faster. — Chicago Tribune, 23 Aug. 2026 In just four years, Keegan had spurred a disintegrating club into a united entity known for its energy and style, cherished as the ‘Entertainers’. — Michael Walker, New York Times, 22 Aug. 2026 Teams must build enough psychological trust to disagree without disintegrating. — Bryan Robinson, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026 Others rot in the California sun, disintegrating into bony fragments. — Jack Flemming, Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026 The experiments have shown how a self-repair mechanism enables the spindle to stabilize itself under force and avoid disintegrating. — Jake Buehler, Quanta Magazine, 29 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disintegrating
  1. decaying
  2. decomposing
  3. grinding
  4. disrupting
  5. deteriorated
  6. rotting
  7. crushing
  8. breaking
Adjective
  • Liberal critics, however, argued—also rightly—that the Soviet Union was a decaying, economically crippled giant by the time Reagan was inaugurated.
    — Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 14 Aug. 2026
  • The district also could be in for other major changes in the coming years, including the opening of a few new schools to replace multiple decaying, underenrolled schools.
    — Scott Travis, Miami Herald, 15 May 2026
Definition of decaying
Verb
  • The evolution of land plants and the development of soil go hand in hand—as these pioneering plants, trees, and animals died and their decomposing remains were recycled on land, by fungi and the first soil invertebrates, modern soils began to form.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Even poor Maggie the cat — the only living animal in Digger’s house and possibly one of the last living animals in the world — is decomposing in his arms, his sister (Sandra Hüller) says with a shudder.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of decomposing
Verb
  • Hitler wanted more dead, but his early lightning victories—Poland beaten in weeks, France in forty days—had turned into a grinding nightmare for the Nazis.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026
  • The Raunchiest Miley Cyrus shocked viewers by stripping down to a nude bikini top and briefs and grinding, twerking and thrusting on fellow performer Robin Thicke at the 2013 show in one of the raciest performances in MTV history.
    — Kate Hogan, PEOPLE, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of grinding
Verb
  • Over the past decade, cyberattacks against the education sector have risen expeditiously, exposing sensitive data, temporarily disrupting school operations and affecting students' learning.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Integration therefore becomes an important part of introducing upgrades without disrupting the wider mission setup.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of disrupting
Adjective
  • Clark said the supports are needed because equipment used in the investigation is too heavy and difficult to maneuver safely on the deteriorated floor.
    — Sacbee.com, Sacbee.com, 14 July 2026
  • According to the officer, the decision to classify Sands' death as such was the result of the deteriorated condition of his body.
    — Nicole Briese, PEOPLE, 27 June 2026
Definition of deteriorated
Verb
  • In the weeks after, more than 85 million pounds of rotting food being kept at the cold storage facility began to rot, leaving a putrid stench lingering over the area that led to infestations of rats, flies and other rodents.
    — Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 29 Sep. 2026
  • The fire’s aftermath was just as bad, with cleanup crews having to contend with removing 89 million pounds of thawing, rotting meat, debris and other material.
    — Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of rotting
Verb
  • His toughness was not in question, though, not after some of those crushing hits.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Agrumato is a proprietary method of crushing whole ingredients with the olives to impart robust flavors.
    — Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of crushing
Verb
  • So joining at all was breaking the rules and keeping a secret.
    — Richard Hall, Time, 7 Oct. 2026
  • The punch-worthy parody of Altman’s characterization ramps up once he’s motivated to push back against — or trample over — the safety guardrails that Ilya prizes above all else, but so does the depth of his world-breaking cynicism.
    — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of breaking

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disintegrating
disintegration
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Cite this Entry

“Disintegrating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disintegrating. Accessed 10 Oct. 2026.

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