disintegration

[ dis-in-tuh-grey-shuhn ]

noun

1. the act or process of disintegrating.
2. Physics. radioactive decay ( def ).

Other Words From

• nondis·inte·gration noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of disintegration¹

First recorded in 1790–1800; disintegrate + -ion

Example Sentences

When Peggy Woolley’s husband was given the same disease in The Archers, June was supportive and – with her experience of Roger’s gradual disintegration – was often consulted by the scriptwriters.

From BBC

“I note with sadness the disintegration of French relations with the continent,” Bourgi says.

From BBC

But climate change is warming the oceans and air, contributing to sea ice becoming more unstable and prone to sudden disintegration in storms.

From BBC

His time in Washington was overshadowed by the public disintegration of his marriage.

From BBC

In channeling John Frankenheimer’s 1966 psychodrama “Seconds” by way of “Beauty and the Beast,” Schimberg has delectably weirder, self-destructive plans for his made-over protagonist — a doom loop of personality disintegration as the past catches up with him.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• dissolution
• fragmentation