Vaporised

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Converted from a liquid or solid state into a gaseous form by heating or evaporation
2. Changed into vapor through the process of warming until the substance disperses as a gas
3. Transformed from liquid or solid into gas by applying heat, causing it to evaporate or dissipate

Etymology: "Vaporised" is the past tense and past participle of "vaporise," a word built from two parts that each arrived by different routes. The noun "vapour" traces back to Latin "vapor," meaning steam or breath, which reached English through Old French "vapeur" and Middle English "vapour." The verbal ending "-ise" has a longer journey: it comes from Ancient Greek "-izein," a suffix that turned nouns and adjectives into verbs meaning "to make or become," which passed through Late Latin "-izare" and Old French before settling into English. Joined together, the two parts give a plain meaning: to turn something into vapour. The verb is a straightforward English formation from the noun, so its interest lies mostly in the suffix, which has been doing this same job for well over two thousand years, carrying words like "criticise" and "baptise" along with it.

Synonyms: evaporated, dispersed

Antonyms: condensed