discharge
verb · noun
Simple meaning
To free of a debt, claim, obligation, responsibility.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
dihschahrjSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
dɪsˈtʃɑɹdʒ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
To free of a debt, claim, obligation, responsibility, accusation, etc.; to absolve; to acquit; to forgive; to clear.
To send away (a creditor) satisfied by payment; to pay one's debt or obligation to.
To accomplish or complete, as an obligation.
To let fly, as a missile; to shoot.
To let fly; to give expression to; to utter.
To expel or let go.
noun
The act of firing a projectile, especially from a firearm.
The act of accomplishing (an obligation) or repaying a debt etc.; performance.
The material thus released.
The process of removing the load borne by something.
The act of expelling or letting go.
The process of flowing out.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: To free of a debt, claim, obligation, responsibility, accusation, etc.; to absolve; to acquit; to forgive; to clear.
Used this way, discharge is a reasonably familiar word with a clearly warm, approving pull. It turns up most in ethics or values contexts.
- Emotional tone
- Positive
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Gentle
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Clear and precise
- Usage feel
- Precise and approving
Where it naturally appears
- Ethics/values
Nearby words
- exculpate , rarer, so it draws attention
- release , a specialist term, precise but narrower
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use discharge
- “After her recovery, the patient was ready for discharge from the hospital.”
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.