evaporable

[ ih-vap-er-uh-buhl ]

adjective

1. capable of being evaporated.

Other Words From

• e·vapo·ra·bili·ty noun
• none·vapo·ra·ble adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of evaporable¹

First recorded in 1535–45; evapor(ate) + -able

Example Sentences

Associated words: volatile, volatility, volatilize, evaporable.

From Project Gutenberg

More About Evaporable

What does evaporable mean?

Evaporable means able to be evaporated—changed from a liquid or solid state into vapor (like fog, mist, or steam).

Evaporate, evaporable, and evaporation are typically used in the context of water turning into water vapor. Water evaporates when it changes into steam through boiling, but in scientific terms, evaporation typically refers to the change of a liquid into a vapor at a temperature below the boiling point, such as when water evaporates from the surface of the ocean. In this way, evaporation is an important part of the water cycle.

Evaporable water is typically water that is exposed to air and heat.

Evaporate can also be used in a figurative way meaning to disappear, and evaporable can also be used in this sense, as in Wealth is evaporable, but your reputation is permanent. 

Example: For the experiment to work, we have to make sure that the water is evaporable—otherwise it will stay in its liquid state.

Where does evaporable come from?

The first records of the word evaporable come from the 1500s. It ultimately derives from the Latin verb ēvapōrāre, meaning “to disperse in vapor.” The word vapor is at the heart of evaporable and comes from the Latin word meaning “steam.” The suffix -able makes it mean “able to be evaporated.”

When you leave out a glass of water and it eventually dries up, it doesn’t just disappear—it evaporates (which, yes, is a bit like disappearing into thin air). Scientifically speaking, liquid is evaporable when it’s on the surface, where the molecules with the highest kinetic energy (the ones with the highest temperature) are able to escape—often by floating off into the atmosphere. This means that liquid often evaporates as a result of added heat, such as from a burner on the stove or the sun.

Evaporation is one step in the water cycle, in which evaporable water, such as on the surface of oceans, lakes, and other bodies of water, turns into water vapor. The cycle continues as the vapor condenses to form clouds and is then released through precipitation, such as rain and snow.

Evaporation is usually discussed in the context of liquids, but it can happen to solids, too. Ice cubes are evaporable—leave them in the freezer long enough and you’ll see them start to get smaller.

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What are some other forms related to evaporable?

• evaporability (noun)
• nonevaporable (adjective)
• evaporate (verb)

What are some synonyms for evaporable?

• dispersible

What are some words that share a root or word element with evaporable? 

• evaporation
• vapor
• vaporization

What are some words that often get used in discussing evaporable?

 

• water
• liquid
• gas
• steam
• moisture
• water cycle

 

How is evaporable used in real life?

Evaporable can be used in a scientific or figurative context, but it’s not commonly used.

@albairaqqatar The water in a cement paste is commonly separated into “evaporable” and “non-evaporable”.

— OBA_Destroyer_S3 (@OBAdestroyer_S3) February 7, 2015

We use an ion pump with an integrated Non Evaporable Getter (https://t.co/DvdJkXNY2m). Some of us have used Ti-sublimation pumps in the past and they work, but these integrated pumps are more compact and do a great job 😊

— @IonQuantum (@IonQuantum) June 12, 2020

Joy is effervescent, evaporable. Sadness percolates, seeps deep and dyes the canvas of the heart forever.

— Farhana Farook (@FarhanaFarook) October 3, 2016

 

 

Try using evaporable!

Is evaporable used correctly in the following sentence? 

The recession has proved that many of these jobs are evaporable.