diffuse

C2 Topic:Places & Geography

US /dɪˈfjuz/ UK /dɪˈfjuːz/ See IPA manual

Freq #27302

Meanings

1

verb
To spread something out over a wide area, or to spread out in this way.

The lamp's shade diffuses the light gently across the room.
2

adj
Spread out widely and not concentrated in one place.

Such a diffuse effort, scattered across too many goals, rarely produces good results.
3

adj
Using too many words and lacking focus.

The essay was so diffuse that the main point was hard to find.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to spread something out... disperse disseminate distribute spread

2 adj · spread out widely and not... spread out

More dispersedforspreadincompactloosenoncompactprolix scattered sparse thinuncompactverbose

Opposites

compact dense

Word family

Forms diffuseddiffusenessdiffusesdiffusingdiffusive

Derived forms diffusabilitydiffusablediffusatediffuselydiffusenessdiffuserdiffusiblediffusonhydrodiffuseinterdiffusenondiffuseoutdiffuse

Related forms diffusion nebulous

Etymology

From Middle French diffuser, from Latin diffūsus, past participle of diffundere, from dis- + fundere.

*ǵʰewd- Proto-Indo-European diffuser Middle French diffūsus Latin

View etymology graph ->

External links

# diffuse

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** verb, adj
**IPA (US):** /dɪˈfjuz/
**IPA (UK):** /dɪˈfjuːz/
**Frequency rank:** 27302

## Meanings
1. To spread something out over a wide area, or to spread out in this way.
2. Spread out widely and not concentrated in one place.
3. Using too many words and lacking focus.

## Examples
- The lamp's shade diffuses the light gently across the room.
- Such a diffuse effort, scattered across too many goals, rarely produces good results.
- The essay was so diffuse that the main point was hard to find.

## Synonyms
- dispersed
- forspread
- incompact
- loose
- noncompact
- prolix
- scattered
- sparse
- thin
- uncompact
- verbose

## Antonyms
- compact
- dense

## Derived Forms
- diffusability
- diffusable
- diffusate
- diffusely
- diffuseness
- diffuser
- diffusible
- diffuson
- hydrodiffuse
- interdiffuse
- nondiffuse
- outdiffuse

## Related Forms
- diffusion
- nebulous

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *ǵʰewd-
- Root: diffuser
- Root: diffūsus

## Etymology
From Middle French diffuser, from Latin diffūsus, past participle of diffundere, from dis- + fundere.

## AI Etymology
Diffuse is from Middle French diffuser, from Latin diffūsus, past participle of diffundere, from dis- + fundere. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern form is built from the named base and affix. Important recorded forms include *ǵʰewd- (Proto-Indo-European), diffuser (Middle French), and diffūsus (Latin). Current senses include to spread something out over a wide area, or to spread out in this way and spread out widely and not concentrated in one place. The wider family includes derived forms such as diffusability, diffusable, diffusate, diffusely, and diffuseness; related words such as diffusion and nebulous.

## Topics
- Places & Geography

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diffuse

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