diffuse

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

• enPR: dĭfyo͞oz'
• (UK) IPA^(key): /dɪˈfjuːz/
• (US) IPA^(key): /dɪˈfjuz/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uːz
• Homophone: defuse

diffuse (third-person singular simple present diffuses, present participle diffusing, simple past and past participle diffused)

1. (transitive) To spread (something) over or through as in air, water, or other matter, especially by fluid motion or passive means.

   The small window diffuses light throughout the room.

   Ideas are easily diffused with the help of technology.

   • 1837, William Whewell, “Earliest Stages of Astronomy”, in History of the Inductive Sciences, from the Earliest to the Present Times. […], volume I, London: John W[illiam] Parker, […]; Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: J. and J. J. Deighton, →OCLC, book III (History of Greek Astronomy), section 3 (Correction of the Civil Year. (Julian Calendar.)), page 121:

     We do not know by whom the insufficiency of the year of 365 days was first discovered; we find this knowledge diffused among all civilized nations, and various artifices used in making the correction.

2. (intransitive) To be spread over or through as in air, water, or other matter, especially by fluid motion or passive means.

   Food coloring diffuses in water.

   The riot diffused quite suddenly.

The words diffuse and defuse are frequently confused. To defuse a difficult situation would be to make it less potentially explosive (as if removing the fuse from a stick of dynamite); to diffuse it would be to spread it around.

• forspread

From Middle English *diffuse (attested in adverb diffuseli), from Latin diffūsus.

• enPR: dĭfyo͞os'
• (UK) IPA^(key): /dɪˈfjuːs/
• (US) IPA^(key): /dɪˈfjus/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uːs

diffuse (comparative more diffuse, superlative most diffuse)

1. Everywhere or throughout everything; not focused or concentrated.

   Such a diffuse effort is unlikely to produce good results.

2. Wordy; verbose.

• (not concentrated): spread out, thin; see also Thesaurus:diffuse
• (verbose): palaverous, prolix; see also Thesaurus:verbose

• diffusion

• “diffuse”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

• Duffies

• IPA^(key): /di.fyz/

• Audio:

  (file)

diffuse

1. inflection of diffuser:
   1. first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
   2. second-person singular imperative

diffuse

1. feminine singular of diffus

• Audio:

  (file)

diffuse

1. inflection of diffus:
   1. strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
   2. strong nominative/accusative plural
   3. weak nominative all-gender singular
   4. weak accusative feminine/neuter singular

• IPA^(key): /difˈfu.ze/
• Rhymes: -uze
• Hyphenation: dif‧fù‧se

diffuse

1. third-person singular past historic of diffondere

diffuse f pl

1. feminine plural of diffuso

diffuse

1. feminine plural of diffuso

From diffūsus (“scattered, spread”).

diffūsē (comparative diffūsius, superlative diffūsissimē)

1. diffusely, in a scattered manner.
2. copiously, fully

• diffūsus

• “diffuse”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, 1st edition. (Oxford University Press)

diffuse

1. definite singular of diffus
2. plural of diffus

diffuse

1. definite singular of diffus
2. plural of diffus