dissipating 1 of 3

adjective

as in wasting

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dissipating

2 of 3

noun

as in squandering

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dissipating

3 of 3

verb

present participle of dissipate
1
as in dispersing
to cause (members of a group) to move widely apart dissipated the enemy forces with unremitting artillery fire

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2
as in spending
to use up carelessly dissipated the family fortune in reckless business ventures

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3
as in dissolving
to go off in different directions and cease to exist as a body or unified whole the fog should dissipate once the sun comes out in full force

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of dissipating
Noun
Between these times, every stage moves from fullness and being a light to finding your light dissipating and toward the crescent. — Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 5 Jan. 2026 Hubble’s more recent imagery shows the dissipating remains of the smash encounter. — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 18 Dec. 2025
Verb
During the filming of an explosion scene featuring him alongside his co-star Leonard Nimoy, the stage doors were accidentally left closed, preventing the blast from dissipating properly. — Ashley Hume , Larry Fink, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026 The storm then roared into Alabama with tropical-force winds before dissipating farther north. — CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026 Warm yet uplifting with a strong hit of black tea, Still Bloom's cardomom, sesame, and orange top notes hit like a shot of caffeine before dissipating into a mellow, comforting underbelly of musk, rose and cedarwood, to name a few. — ABC News, 9 Oct. 2026 After dissipating, some of the storm’s remnant moisture then traveled into parts of New Mexico and West Texas, bringing heavy rainfall to the region. — Newsroom Meteorologist, San Antonio Express-News, 30 Sep. 2026 Rinsing also cools down the seed, dissipating heat that builds up from the sprouting seeds. — Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 14 Sep. 2026 Dull spells and lulls will crop up, building like waves, peaking, crashing, then dissipating. — Carlos Valladares, ARTnews.com, 11 Sep. 2026 As a result, each shell collapses sequentially, gradually absorbing and dissipating the kinetic energy. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 9 Sep. 2026 Others are content simply to provoke a few smiles, before dissipating like smoke with the very next breeze. — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dissipating
  1. wasteful
  2. squandering
  3. dispersing
  4. spending
  5. dissolving
  6. profligate
  7. losing
  8. disappearing
Adjective
  • As costs kept climbing, many health economists were reluctant to probe the wasteful spending that accompanied the consolidation frenzy.
    — Dana P. Goldman, STAT, 22 Oct. 2026
  • President Bola Tinubu, who is seeking a second term in January, has repeatedly defended his decision to scrap a years-long subsidy program in 2023 to avoid wasteful spending and invest in infrastructure development.
    — Alexander Onukwue, semafor.com, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of wasteful
Noun
  • An everyman figure squeezing every bit of talent from his frame, a boy who returned to working as a fisherman after the first squandering of his football dream, from a family that could not always afford to buy him studded boots.
    — Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 19 June 2026
  • Watching students use that platform to walk out on the CEO of one of the world’s most consequential companies clearly struck him as a squandering of rare privilege.
    — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 15 June 2026
Definition of squandering
Verb
  • In contrast, peregrine falcons that breed in Alaska migrate almost directly south, dispersing across the Americas to wintering grounds that extend as far as southern South America.
    — Amy L. Scarpignato, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Israeli troops later arrived in Abu Falah and drove up to the village after dispersing the crowd in the olive groves.
    — Sam Metz, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of dispersing
Verb
  • The actress was recently photographed while spending some time in the Hamptons last Friday, just weeks after turning 91.
    — Lori A Bashian, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026
  • But for our customers, spending time in a boring appliance of a car might be the real madness.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of spending
Verb
  • Eventually, committee members discussed dissolving the committee or resigning from the board if Zuckerberg wouldn’t make concessions for the benefit of all Class A shareholders.
    — Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Figures emerge from his signature black background, their silhouettes resolving and dissolving amid legato drips and vigorous brushwork.
    — Tara Anne Dalbow, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of dissolving
Adjective
  • The combination of slow growth, high inflation, profligate spending, and soaring debt has stirred a revolt in financial markets.
    — Jason Ma, Fortune, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Chicagoans expect Pritzker to defend us from profligate mayoral borrowing and spending, not add to it.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of profligate
Verb
  • Aside from briefly losing the seat for one term nearly a decade ago, Valadao has hung onto the seat.
    — Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2026
  • For this year’s show at Compton Verney, Cadogan has taken inspiration from British people who’ve written to her about losing beloved trees in their own gardens, or public spaces.
    — Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of losing
Verb
  • The truck drives south, then west on Highway 46 through fields of almond trees and roses, before disappearing into an industrial zone near the farming center of Wasco.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026
  • The band works its way around the stage with drummer Lars Ulrich’s drum kits disappearing into its bowels and a different kit appearing at another vantage point.
    — Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of disappearing

Browse Nearby Words

dissipates
dissipating
dissipation
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Cite this Entry

“Dissipating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dissipating. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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