corrosion

[ kuh-roh-zhuhn ]
See synonyms for corrosion on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the act or process of corroding; condition of being corroded.

  2. a product of corroding, as rust.

Origin of corrosion

1
1350–1400; Middle English (<Middle French ) <Late Latin corrōsiōn- (stem of corrōsiō) a gnawing away, equivalent to Latin corrōs(us), past participle of corrōdere to corrode + -iōn--ion

Other words from corrosion

  • cor·ro·sion·al, adjective

Words Nearby corrosion

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use corrosion in a sentence

  • (LOC 3507-3510) The most dangerous consequence of sexual attraction, however, is the corrosion of unit cohesion.

  • The heat and corrosion of this idea spread through her being, and the will made no fight against it.

    Marriage la mode | Mrs. Humphry Ward
  • The concrete not only affords much of the strength to resist compression, but effectively protects the steel from corrosion.

  • The oil not only prevents evaporation but aids greatly to keep the uncovered parts from corrosion.

  • It must have been new when this world froze, for there was no sign of corrosion or oxidation.

    Islands of Space | John W Campbell
  • The line of corrosion extending around the hull might have weakened her so badly that she was unseaworthy.

    The Lost Warship | Robert Moore Williams

British Dictionary definitions for corrosion

corrosion

/ (kəˈrəʊʒən) /


noun
  1. a process in which a solid, esp a metal, is eaten away and changed by a chemical action, as in the oxidation of iron in the presence of water by an electrolytic process

  2. slow deterioration by being eaten or worn away

  1. the condition produced by or the product of corrosion

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for corrosion

corrosion

[ kə-rōzhən ]


  1. The breaking down or destruction of a material, especially a metal, through chemical reactions. The most common form of corrosion is rusting, which occurs when iron combines with oxygen and water.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.