- to become oxidized.
- (especially of white wine) to lose freshness after prolonged exposure to air and often to darken in color.
Also especially British, ox·i·dise.
Origin of oxidize
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for oxidized
Some of the fuel has probably been oxidized and breached and melted at the top of the core where the heat rises.Japan Nuclear Crisis: What Is a Full Meltdown?
March 15, 2011
When they are burnt, or oxidized, they become almost harmless.A Handbook of Health
The yarn must be oxidized by exposure to the air for the same length of time as dipped.Vegetable Dyes
Ethel M. Mairet
The manganese ores are mined principally in the oxidized zone.The Economic Aspect of Geology
C. K. Leith
If the mission effect is desired, an oxidized or copper sash should be used.Mission Furniture
H. H. Windsor
This outcrop is oxidized, and being free, is easily amalgamated with mercury.An African Adventure
Isaac F. Marcosson
- to undergo or cause to undergo a chemical reaction with oxygen, as in formation of an oxide
- to form or cause to form a layer of metal oxide, as in rusting
- to lose or cause to lose hydrogen atoms
- to undergo or cause to undergo a decrease in the number of electronsCompare reduce (def. 12c)
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
Word Origin and History for oxidized
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
- To combine with oxygen; change into an oxide.
- 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.
- To undergo or cause to undergo oxidation.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.