deactivate

[ dee-ak-tuh-veyt ]
See synonyms for deactivate on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object),de·ac·ti·vat·ed, de·ac·ti·vat·ing.
  1. to cause to be inactive; remove the effectiveness of.

  2. to demobilize or disband (a military unit).

  1. to render (a bomb, shell, or the like) inoperative, especially by disconnecting, removing, or otherwise interfering with the action of the fuze.

  2. Chemistry. to render (a chemical, enzyme, catalyst, etc.) inactive.

verb (used without object),de·ac·ti·vat·ed, de·ac·ti·vat·ing.
  1. Physical Chemistry. to lose radioactivity.

Origin of deactivate

1
First recorded in 1900–05; de- + activate

Other words from deactivate

  • de·ac·ti·va·tion, noun
  • de·ac·ti·va·tor, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for deactivate

deactivate

/ (diːˈæktɪˌveɪt) /


verb
  1. (tr) to make (a bomb, etc) harmless or inoperative

  2. (intr) to become less radioactive

  1. (tr) US to end the active status of (a military unit)

  2. chem to return or cause to return from an activated state to a normal or ground state

Derived forms of deactivate

  • deactivation, noun
  • deactivator, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012