melt

1 of 3

verb

melted; melting; melts

intransitive verb

1
: to become altered from a solid to a liquid state usually by heat
2
a
: dissolve, disintegrate
the sugar melted in the coffee
b
: to disappear as if by dissolving
her anger melted at his kind words
3
obsolete : to become subdued or crushed (as by sorrow)
4
: to become mild, tender, or gentle
5
: to lose outline or distinctness : blend

transitive verb

1
: to reduce from a solid to a liquid state usually by heat
2
: to cause to disappear or disperse
3
: to make tender or gentle : soften
meltability noun
meltable adjective
melter noun

melt

2 of 3

noun (1)

1
a
: material in the molten state
b
: the mass melted at a single operation or the quantity melted during a specified period
2
a
: the action or process of melting or the period during which it occurs
the spring melt
b
: the condition of being melted
3
: a sandwich with melted cheese
a tuna melt

melt

3 of 3

noun (2)

: spleen
especially : spleen of slaughtered animals for use as feed or food

Examples of melt in a Sentence

Verb The butter melted in the frying pan. The snow is finally melting. She melted butter in the frying pan. a tablespoon of melted butter Their determination melted in the face of opposition. She melted at his kindly words. Her heart melted with compassion.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Tumors that ‘melted away’ Brown and her team recently published results from the largest study yet of the use of CAR-T in advanced glioma brain tumors, which included 65 patients. Brenda Goodman, CNN, 13 Mar. 2024 Salmon and mackerel both make for a warm, cheesy riff on a tuna melt. Audrey Bruno, SELF, 13 Mar. 2024 This feeling quickly melts away as Keys opens up about the importance of self-care to her. Celeste Polanco, Essence, 13 Mar. 2024 The cubes clink against the sides and slowly melt around me, bringing my body temperature back to bearable. Katie Lockhart, Vogue, 12 Mar. 2024 The signs of resistance melting away have come from across the political world. Lisa Lerer, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2024 This diagram of the subglacial probe shows its melting head as well as its suite of sensors. IEEE Spectrum, 4 Mar. 2024 Naturally, the butter melting over everything is certified Kerrygold. Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 4 Mar. 2024 In our experience, when employees fully understand how AI benefits them, and can make their jobs easier, those concerns melt away. Toni Handler, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024
Noun
Armed with the size and number of impactors, Marchi and colleagues built a model that describes, as a function of time, the volume of melt this battering must have produced at the Earth’s surface. Alka Tripathy-Lang, Ars Technica, 26 Jan. 2024 Some of the flooding that's impacting the Midwest and the Northeast is due to the heavy rain on top of snow melt and ice jams. Max Golembo, ABC News, 26 Jan. 2024 Better Homes & Gardens Full Size Warmer Flickering Fireplace This playful design offers the warm glow of a fireplace with the soothing fragrances of wax melts. Megan Boettcher, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Dec. 2023 The plan is to fortify some areas to slow the melt while simultaneously covering other areas with specialized blankets designed to protect the snow. Dane Mizutani, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2024 The biggest difference between burgers and patty melts is that burgers have buns and patty melts have bread. Pete Wells, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2024 Place in a 325 degree oven until cheese melts and croissant gets crispy. The View, ABC News, 5 Jan. 2024 And as climate change accelerates glacier melt and the subsequent erosion in those regions, those landslide tsunamis are increasingly likely. Chuong Nguyen, Ars Technica, 27 Nov. 2023 In 23 of those shrinking snowpacks, Mankin and Gottlieb, using variations on standard scientific techniques, were able to show that climate change clearly contributed to the melt. TIME, 10 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'melt.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Old English meltan; akin to Old Norse melta to digest, Greek meldein to melt — more at mollify

Noun (2)

Middle English milte, from Old English; akin to Old High German miltzi spleen

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun (1)

1847, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of melt was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near melt

Cite this Entry

“Melt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/melt. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

melt

1 of 2 verb
1
: to change from a solid to a liquid state usually through heat
melt butter
snow melts
2
: dissolve sense 1
the sugar melted in the coffee
3
: to grow less : disappear
clouds melting away
4
: to make or become gentle : soften
a warm smile melts the heart
5
: to lose clear outline or shape : blend, merge
melter noun

melt

2 of 2 noun
: a melted substance

More from Merriam-Webster on melt

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