Dissolves

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Changes from a solid or gas state into a liquid by mixing evenly with it ; breaks down into smaller parts or ceases to exist as a whole
2. Is absorbed fully into a liquid, forming a solution ; separates into components or crumbles into pieces
3. Is mixed uniformly into a liquid so it no longer appears solid ; falls apart or is undone, losing its original form or structure

Etymology: "Dissolves" is the third-person singular present form of "dissolve," so its history is that of the verb. English acquired the verb around 1374, when Middle English "dissolven" replaced the Old English "toliesan," which meant something close to "to loosen apart." The Latin source is "dissolvere," built from "dis-," meaning "apart," and "solvere," meaning "to loose" or "to loosen." Latin used the word for untying knots and breaking things apart, and the chemical sense of melting into a liquid is a later extension of that basic idea of loosening a structure. The immediate route into English ran through Anglo-Norman "dissoldre," a variant of Old French "dissoudre," which carried the same sense of loosening and separating. Because "solvere" also gave English "solve," "resolve," and "absolve," the verb is related to a whole family of words built on the image of undoing a tight bond.

Synonyms: melts, liquefies, disintegrates, vanishes, fades

Antonyms: solidifies, coagulates, congeals, forms, stiffens