Vaporization

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The process of converting a liquid or solid substance into gas or vapor through the application of heat or reduction in pressure
2. The transformation of a material from its liquid or solid state into a gaseous form due to increased temperature or lowered pressure occurs during this phenomenon
3. This occurrence involves changing a substance from either solid or liquid to gas, typically by heating or lowering the surrounding pressure

Etymology: "Vaporization" is a plain technical formation: the noun "vapor" with the suffix "-ization," which turns a noun or adjective into the idea of making or becoming that thing. Here "vapor" is the base and the suffix does the work of meaning "the process of turning into vapor." The base itself came into English by a long route. Its ancestor is Latin "vapor," meaning steam or hot breath, which passed into Old French as "vapeur" and then into Middle English as "vapour." The English spelling "vapor" in American usage reflects the Latin original more closely. The suffix has an even longer chain behind it. It runs from Ancient Greek "-izein," through Late Latin "-izare," Old French "-iser," and Middle English "-isen," before settling as the modern English "-ize." The "-ation" ending came through Latin "-ātiō" and Old French "-ation," so "vaporization" combines a Greek-derived verb-forming element with a Latin-derived noun ending.

Synonyms: evaporation, fuming, steam, diffusion, gasification

Antonyms: condensation, solidification, freezing, precipitation, deposition