Saltify

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To impart saltiness to a substance; to chemically cause the formation of a salt compound; to treat or preserve food by applying salt
2. To add salt flavor or content to something; to induce a reaction producing a salt; to use salt to enhance flavor or preservation
3. To make something salty in taste or composition; to convert into a salt through chemical process; to cure or season food with salt for taste or longevity

Etymology: "Saltify" is a plain English formation: the noun "salt" with the causative suffix "-ify," which turns a noun into a verb meaning "to make into, or treat with, the thing named." Hence "saltify" means to treat something with salt, or to convert something into a salt. The suffix comes from Latin "-ificare," itself built from "facere," "to make," and English has used it for centuries to create verbs such as "purify" and "beautify." The sense of "saltify" is broader than cooking. In chemistry, it describes a reaction in which an acid and a base combine to yield a salt, so a chemist might say that a solution was saltified. In food preparation, the same idea applies to salting meat or fish for preservation, and a cook might speak of saltifying a dish to heighten its flavour. The verb thus covers both the kitchen and the laboratory, joined by the shared notion of making something salty or salt-like.

Synonyms: salt

Antonyms: desalinate