deliquesce means to melt by absorbing water and disappearing.
deliquesce is pronounced /ˌdɛlɪˈkwɛs/.
Why “deliquesce” is a great word
To become liquid by absorbing moisture from the atmosphere and dissolving in it. From Latin dēliquēscere, from dē- ("down, away") + liquēscere ("to become fluid, melt"), first recorded in English 1750–60. Unlike "dissolve," which implies mixing into a pre-existing liquid, or "evaporate," its direct thermodynamic opposite, to deliquesce is a passive, atmospheric undoing. It is the efflorescent salt weeping into a pool on the laboratory shelf, the forgotten cube of potassium hydroxide sagging into a viscous puddle, the chalky saint softening into featurelessness on a damp chapel wall—a quiet demonstration that solidity is but a temporary agreement with a dry day.
Etymology
From Latin dēliquēscō, from dē- + liquēscō (“to liquefy”).
verb
- To melt by absorbing water and disappearing.“But I could find no saltpetre; indeed, no nitrates of any kind. Doubtless they had deliquesced ages ago.”
- To become liquid by absorbing water from the atmosphere and dissolving in it.“Some salts will deliquesce when left exposed.”
Words closest in meaning
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