How to Use diffuse in a Sentence

diffuse

1 of 2 adjective
Definition of diffusenext
Synonyms for diffusenext
  • The forest was filled with a soft, diffuse light.
  • Runner’s knee can feel like a dull, diffuse ache in and around the kneecap.
    — SELF, 7 Dec. 2018
  • The best light for most sculptural pieces is diffuse daylight.
    — Marni Jameson, The Denver Post, 23 Feb. 2017
  • The front is somewhat diffuse, shallow and does not have great impetus to move.
    — Jeff Halverson, Washington Post, 20 June 2018
  • Are Levi’s efforts too diffuse to add up to real impact?
    — Heather Landy, Quartz at Work, 18 Dec. 2019
  • The wealth of families like the Rothschilds or Rockefellers is too diffuse to value.
    — Bloomberg.com, 27 June 2018
  • The first symptoms are diffuse yellow areas on the top side of leaves, with the plants taking on an overall sick look, and brown spots as the disease progresses.
    — Tim Johnson, chicagotribune.com, 26 Aug. 2019
  • On the front line Though the protests remain diffuse, without a visible leader, a few young activists have stepped to the forefront of some actions.
    — Suzanne Sataline, The Christian Science Monitor, 9 July 2019
  • The idea of protesting in small, diffuse groups was in part aimed at complicating policing efforts, Tang added.
    — John Leicester, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Oct. 2019
  • The panels will draw on both direct and diffuse light, allowing them to suck in energy straight from the sun and from rays reflected back up from the clouds.
    — Yuliya Fedorinova, Bloomberg.com, 25 May 2017
  • The first movement may have been somewhat diffuse but the payoff was a revelation of inner voices.
    — Zachary Lewis, cleveland, 14 Oct. 2019
  • In a more diffuse way, social media users have been adept at putting names to the faces of white nationalists who marched at Charlottesville and getting them fired from their jobs.
    — Jeet Heer, New Republic, 19 Aug. 2017
  • Researchers have slowly chipped away at that gap by adding to the census all the hot, diffuse gas in the enormous halos of galaxies and even larger galaxy clusters.
    — Amina Khan, latimes.com, 20 June 2018
  • But her script is too diffuse—and too in love with the poetry of the Ukrainian women's black humor—to develop that theme with any force or clarity.
    — Tony Adler, Chicago Reader, 12 July 2018
  • Night shift: The bright, diffuse interior lights in the Armada are too bright and diffuse for igniting while in motion.
    — Scott Sturgis, Philly.com, 15 Dec. 2017
  • Groups have asked about using the technology in the ocean in places like the Pacific trash vortex, but by that point, Kellett said, the debris is probably too diffuse.
    — Jackie Snow, National Geographic, 17 Feb. 2017
  • This may be because even the most advanced telescope lenses scatter too much incoming light to pick up the faint mergers of small and diffuse galaxies.
    — Quanta Magazine, 28 Sep. 2016
  • The rapid, diffuse arrival of electric scooters on sidewalks and street corners revealed the yawning gaps in urban transportation that cars, buses, trains, and bikes just can’t close.
    — Umair Irfan, Vox, 5 Dec. 2018
  • In most experiments, researchers awaken opsin-bearing neurons of a specific cell type with a pulse of diffuse blue-green light.
    — Kelly Servick, Science | AAAS, 18 July 2019
  • The image captures a wide array of phenomena; some fall under the category of halos, while the more diffuse shadings closer to the moon are from a corona.
    — Washington Post, 11 Jan. 2020
  • Try to be the bigger person, but don’t let self-restraint get you down — diffuse frustrations through something like journaling, taking long walks, or cooking a meal.
    — Randon Rosenbohm, Allure, 29 May 2019
  • In the United States, a younger and more diffuse population means the peak comes a bit later and doesn't rise as high per capita, but the larger population means that over 2 million people end up dead.
    — John Timmer, Ars Technica, 17 Mar. 2020
  • All too often, Prokofiev Two comes off as little more than a virtuoso showpiece, a brilliant but diffuse display of solo talent.
    — Zachary Lewis, cleveland, 18 Oct. 2019
  • The galaxy’s spiral disk of stars is actually made of two parts: a thinner, denser region encompassed by a thicker, more diffuse region.
    — Ramin Skibba, WIRED, 8 July 2018
  • Nature has innate mystery; its smallest building blocks simply are fuzzy and diffuse objects.
    — Sophia Chen, WIRED, 20 June 2019
  • While some of the hoteliers Glamour spoke to do offer diffuser attachments to their blow-dryers upon request, the temperatures of the dryers can sometimes be too much.
    — Andrea Arterbery, Glamour, 16 May 2018
  • Argus II offers a relatively crude form of artificial vision; users see diffuse spots of light called phosphenes.
    — Kelly Servick, Science | AAAS, 31 Oct. 2019
  • Authority has become something diffuse and flammable, like spray paint.
    — Michelle Dean, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2018
  • Like one of the smooth wood sculptures inside, its solid form twists and in some cases fractures, opening up large skylights that bring diffuse illumination into the galleries.
    — Sam Lubell, Los Angeles Times, 2 Apr. 2020
  • Carbon emissions, invisible and with a slow, diffuse impact, are of a different order.
    — Washington Post, 7 Aug. 2019
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diffuse

2 of 2 verb
  • The heat was diffused throughout the room.
  • The photographer uses a screen to diffuse the light.
  • The heat from the radiator diffuses throughout the room.
  • Keep in Mind: The fan has a mesh drum, which won't diffuse light.
    — Tanya Edwards, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Sep. 2022
  • String of Pearls plants need six to eight hours of sun and diffuse light or shade for the remainder of the day.
    — Kate McGregor, housebeautiful.com, 21 Apr. 2023
  • These are the warmest areas of the body, which help to diffuse the scent molecules.
    — The Salt Lake Tribune, 7 Apr. 2022
  • Instead of the vague, diffuse din that pollutes the air at most bars, at Bar Shiru the atmosphere swells with a rich, reedy jazz.
    — Esther Mobley, San Francisco Chronicle, 8 Aug. 2022
  • When the ground shifts under our feet, its vibrations are apt to diffuse.
    — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 16 Nov. 2023
  • Sometimes the light is stark; other times it has been diffused by morning fog.
    — Carolina A. Miranda, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2023
  • These spokes will diffuse your hair and gently build volume at the roots, leaving your hair full.
    — Marielle Marlys, Good Housekeeping, 2 Nov. 2021
  • The gauzy fabric provides a sense of privacy and helps diffuse light.
    — Jessica Bennett, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Oct. 2023
  • The many sides of the ice crystals diffuse the reflection of the light spectrum, which results in the snowflake appearing to be white.
    — John Schandelmeier, Anchorage Daily News, 1 Jan. 2023
  • Wg proteins themselves do not diffuse widely from their place of origin in the brain.
    — William A. Haseltine, Forbes, 11 July 2022
  • If your window gets lots of direct sunlight, pull the plant back a bit or diffuse the light with a sheer curtain.
    — Arricca Elin Sansone, Country Living, 30 Aug. 2023
  • The Gemini moon has some tricks that diffuse your focus.
    — USA TODAY, 22 Jan. 2024
  • After sketching on your wing, use a smudger brush to blur it our for a pretty, diffuse effect.
    — Bella Cacciatore, Glamour, 26 Oct. 2021
  • Brown says to line your eyes with a chocolate powder shadow, then use a small, firm brush to diffuse the color.
    — Tia Williams, Harper's BAZAAR, 22 Feb. 2023
  • The room’s heavy floor-to-ceiling cotton curtains, made from a William Morris print called the Tree of Life, diffuse the light from a bay window that was added in the 1950s.
    — Carolyn Asome David Fernández, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2022
  • This will help the fridge diffuse heat better and run more efficiently.
    — Mimi Montgomery, Washington Post, 28 June 2022
  • Per the report, the tapes released on Friday do not depict any of the cops looking to diffuse aggressive use of force.
    — Althea Legaspi, Rolling Stone, 29 Jan. 2023
  • Above the fire pot there is a large metal plate or pan that diffuses the heat and distributes it evenly.
    — Bradley Ford, Popular Mechanics, 8 Mar. 2023
  • Hoppus, was diagnosed with stage 4 diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and first went public with the news in June of last year.
    — Natasha Dado, PEOPLE.com, 31 Jan. 2022
  • So get to posting, aka diffusing that warm and fuzzy feeling the same way that your glitter amplifies the light.
    — Calin Van Paris, Vogue, 29 Dec. 2023
  • Sarver's intention to sell seemed to diffuse tensions on what could have been a very awkward day — and season — for the Suns.
    — David Brandt, ajc, 26 Sep. 2022
  • Throughout each step, Mendoza makes sure to diffuse the edges of each polish that was airbrushed onto the nails.
    — Chelsea Avila, Allure, 16 Oct. 2022
  • He had been diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
    — Ginger Adams Otis, WSJ, 21 Jan. 2022
  • If impassioned debates are inevitable for some, can anything be done to diffuse them, or at least take the sting out?
    — Seamus McAvoy, courant.com, 23 Nov. 2021
  • Then, take a blending brush and diffuse the edges of the pigment, creating a gorgeous soft, smoky effect all around your eyes.
    — Margaux Anbouba, Vogue, 29 Dec. 2023
  • The vast roof is made up of hundreds of semi-translucent panels that diffuse sunlight during the day to reduce glare and help cool the building.
    — Brandon Griggs, CNN, 11 Feb. 2022
  • There were plenty of people who helped diffuse McKinney’s anger and guilt.
    — John Blake, CNN, 8 Oct. 2022

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

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