DISSIPATE, v.t. [L., to throw.] 1. To scatter; to disperse; to drive asunder. Wind dissipates fog; the heat of the sun dissipates vapor; mirth dissipates care and anxiety; the cares of life tend to dissipate serious reflections. Scatter, disperse and dissipate are in many cases synonymous; but dissipate is used appropriately to denote the dispersion of things that vanish, or are not afterwards collected; as, to dissipate fog, vapor or clouds. We say, an army is scattered or dispersed, but not dissipated. Trees are scattered or dispersed over a field, but not dissipated.2. To expend; to squander; to scatter property in wasteful extravagance; to waste; to consume; as, a man has dissipated his fortune in the pursuit of pleasure.3. To scatter the attention.DISSIPATE, v.i. To scatter; to disperse; to separate into parts and disappear; to waste away; to vanish. A fog or cloud gradually dissipates, before the rays or heat of the sun. The heat of a body dissipates; the fluids dissipate.
|
