melt
verb · noun
Simple meaning
Reduce or cause to be reduced from a solid to a liquid state, usually by heating.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
mehltIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈmɛlt
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
ergative
Reduce or cause to be reduced from a solid to a liquid state, usually by heating
ergative
To change (or to be changed) from a solid state to a liquid state, usually by a gradual heat.
transitivefigurative
To soften, as by a warming or kindly influence; to relax; to render gentle or susceptible to mild influences; sometimes, in a bad sense, to take away the firmness of; to weaken.
intransitivefiguratively
To dissolve, disperse, vanish.
intransitivefigurative
To be emotionally softened or touched.
intransitive
To be discouraged.
noun
The process whereby heat changes something from a solid to a liquid
“The power failure caused a refrigerator melt that was a disaster.”
The transition of matter from a solid state to a liquid state.
The springtime snow runoff in mountain regions.
A wax-based substance for use in an oil burner as an alternative to mixing oils and water.
Molten material, the product of melting.
A melt sandwich.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Reduce or cause to be reduced from a solid to a liquid state, usually by heating
Used this way, melt is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use melt
- “Her resistance melted under his charm.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Similar Words, What’s the Difference?
Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
The process whereby heat changes something from a solid to a liquid.
Changed from a solid to a liquid state.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Take off weight.
Reduce or cause to be reduced from a solid to a liquid state, usually by heating.
The temperature below which a liquid turns into a solid.
An environment in which many ideas and races are socially assimilated.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
Severe overheating of the core of a nuclear reactor resulting in the core melting and radiation escaping.
Severe overheating of the core of a nuclear reactor resulting in the core melting and radiation escaping.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
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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.