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oxidize - 6 dictionary results

ox⋅i⋅dize

  [ok-si-dahyz] verb, -dized, -diz⋅ing. Chemistry
Use oxidize in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to convert (an element) into an oxide; combine with oxygen.
2. to cover with a coating of oxide or rust.
3. to take away hydrogen, as by the action of oxygen; add oxygen or any nonmetal.
4. to remove electrons from (an atom or molecule), thereby increasing the valence. Compare reduce (def. 12).
–verb (used without object)
5. to become oxidized.
6. (esp. of white wine) to lose freshness after prolonged exposure to air and often to darken in color.
Also, especially British, ox⋅i⋅dise.

Origin:
1795–1805; oxide + -ize

Related forms:
ox⋅i⋅diz⋅a⋅ble, ox⋅i⋅da⋅ble  [ok-si-duh-buhl] , adjective
ox⋅i⋅diz⋅a⋅bil⋅i⋅ty, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To oxidize
ox·i·dize   (ŏk'sĭ-dīz')   
v.   ox·i·dized, ox·i·diz·ing, ox·i·diz·es

v.   tr.
  1. To combine with oxygen; make into an oxide.
  2. To increase the positive charge or valence of (an element) by removing electrons.
  3. To coat with oxide.
v.   intr.
To become oxidized.
ox'i·diz'a·ble adj., ox'i·di·za'tion (-dĭ-zā'shən) n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Oxidize

Ox"i*dize\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oxidized; p. pr. & vb. n. Oxidizing.] (Chem.) To combine with oxygen, or subject to the action of oxygen, or of an oxidizing agent. Specifically: (a) To combine with oxygen or with more oxygen; to add oxygen to; as, to oxidize nitrous acid so as to form nitric acid. (b) To remove hydrogen from (anything), as by the action of oxygen; as, to oxidize alcohol so as to form aldehyde. (c) To subject to the action of oxygen or of an oxidizing agent, so as to bring to a higher grade, as an -ous compound to an -ic compound; as, to oxidize mercurous chloride to mercuric chloride.

Note: In certain cases to oxidize is identical with to acidify; for, in nearly all cases, the more oxygen a substance contains the more nearly does it approximate to acid qualities; thus, by oxidation many elements, as sulphur, nitrogen, carbon, chromium, manganese, etc., pass into compounds which are acid anhydrides, and thus practically in the acid state.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Main Entry: ox·i·dize
Variant: also British ox·i·dise /'äk-s&-"dIz/
Function: verb
Inflected Forms:-dized also British -dised; -diz·ing also British -dis·ing
transitive senses
1 : to combine with oxygen
2 : to dehydrogenate especially by the action of oxygen
3 : to change (a compound) by increasing the proportion of the electronegative part or change (an element orion) from a lower to a higher positive valence : remove one or more electrons from (an atom, ion, or molecule) intransitive senses
: to become oxidized —ox·i·diz·able /-"dI-z&-b&l/ adjective
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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oxidize ox·i·dize (ŏk'sĭ-dīz')
v. ox·i·dized, ox·i·diz·ing, ox·i·diz·es

  1. To combine with oxygen; change into an oxide.
  2. To increase the positive charge or valence of an element by removing electrons.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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oxidize   (ŏk'sĭ-dīz')  Pronunciation Key 
To undergo or cause to undergo oxidation.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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