evaporation

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   the process by which a liquid changes into a gas, especially at its surface

   Evaporation from the lake is fastest on hot, dry, windy days.

2. 2
   noun

   the gradual disappearance or loss of something

   The banking crisis caused a rapid evaporation of public confidence.

From French evaporation and Latin evaporatio, from evaporare ("to disperse in vapor"). The Latin verb combines e- ("out") with vapor ("steam, vapor"). The figurative sense extends the physical process to something that gradually disappears.

Topics