Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

dis·solve       (dĭ-zŏlv')  Pronunciation Key  v.   dis·solved, dis·solv·ing, dis·solves v.   tr. To cause to pass into solution: dissolve salt in water. To reduce (solid matter) to liquid form; melt. To cause to disappear or vanish; dispel. To break into component parts; disintegrate. To bring to an end by or as if by breaking up; terminate. To dismiss (a legislative body, for example): dissolved parliament and called for new elections. To cause to break down emotionally or psychologically; upset. To cause to lose definition; blur; confuse: "Morality has finally been dissolved in pity" (Leslie Fiedler). Law To annul; abrogate. v.   intr. To pass into solution. To become liquid; melt. To break up or disperse. To become disintegrated; disappear. To be overcome emotionally or psychologically: I dissolved into helpless laughter. To lose clarity or definition; fade away. To shift shots in a motion-picture film or videotape by having one shot fade out while the next appears behind it and grows clearer as the first one dims. n.   A transition in a motion-picture film or videotape made by fading out one shot while the next one grows clearer. Also called lap dissolve. [Middle English dissolven, from Latin dissolvere : dis-, dis- + solvere, to release; see leu- in Indo-European roots.] dis·solv'a·ble adj., dis·solv'er n.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
dissolve 

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

dissolve
noun
1.	(film) a gradual transition from one scene to the next; the next scene is gradually superimposed as the former scene fades out
verb
1.	become weaker; "The sound faded out"
2.	cause to go into a solution; "The recipe says that we should dissolve a cup of sugar in two cups of water"
3.	come to an end; "Their marriage dissolved"; "The tobacco monopoly broke up"
4.	stop functioning or cohering as a unit; "The political wing of the party dissolved after much internal fighting" [syn: disband]
5.	cause to lose control emotionally; "The news dissolved her into tears"
6.	lose control emotionally; "She dissolved into tears when she heard that she had lost all her savings in the pyramid scheme"
7.	cause to fade away; "dissolve a shot or a picture"
8.	pass into a solution; "The sugar quickly dissolved in the coffee"
9.	become or cause to become soft or liquid; "The sun melted the ice"; "the ice thawed"; "the ice cream melted"; "The heat melted the wax"; "The giant iceberg dissolved over the years during the global warming phase"; "dethaw the meat"
10.	bring the association of to an end or cause to break up; "The decree officially dissolved the marriage"; "the judge dissolved the tobacco company"
11.	declare void; "The President dissolved the parliament and called for new elections"

The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

dissolve       (dĭ-zŏlv')  Pronunciation Key  To pass or cause to pass into solution.

American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

dissolve dis·solve (dĭ-zŏlv')
v. dis·solved, dis·solv·ing, dis·solves

1. To pass or cause to pass into a solution, as salt in water.
2. To become or cause to become liquid; melt.
3. To cause to disintegrate or become disintegrated.

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law - Cite This Source - Share This
Main Entry: dis·solve
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: dis·solved; dis·solv·ing
: to bring about the dissolution of —dis·solv·able adjective

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Dissolve

Dis*solve"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dissolved; p. pr. & vb. n. Dissolving.] [L. dissolvere, dissolutum; dis- + solvere to loose, free. See Solve, and cf. Dissolute.]

1. To separate into competent parts; to disorganize; to break up; hence, to bring to an end by separating the parts, sundering a relation, etc.; to terminate; to destroy; to deprive of force; as, to dissolve a partnership; to dissolve Parliament.

Lest his ungoverned rage dissolve the life. --Shak.

2. To break the continuity of; to disconnect; to disunite; to sunder; to loosen; to undo; to separate.

Nothing can dissolve us. --Shak.

Down fell the duke, his joints dissolved asunder. --Fairfax.

For one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another. --The Declaration of Independence.

3. To convert into a liquid by means of heat, moisture, etc.,; to melt; to liquefy; to soften.

As if the world were all dissolved to tears. --Shak.

4. To solve; to clear up; to resolve. "Dissolved the mystery." --Tennyson.

Make interpretations and dissolve doubts. --Dan. v. 16.

5. To relax by pleasure; to make powerless.

Angels dissolved in hallelujahs lie. --Dryden.

6. (Law) To annul; to rescind; to discharge or release; as, to dissolve an injunction.

Syn: See Adjourn.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Dissolve

Dis*solve"\, v. i. 1. To waste away; to be dissipated; to be decomposed or broken up.

2. To become fluid; to be melted; to be liquefied.

A figure Trenched in ice, which with an hour's heat Dissolves to water, and doth lose his form. --Shak.

3. To fade away; to fall to nothing; to lose power.

The charm dissolves apace. --Shak.