decompose

[dee-kuhm-pohz]

verb (used with object)

decomposed, decomposing 

1. to separate or resolve into constituent parts or elements; disintegrate.

   The bacteria decomposed the milk into its solid and liquid elements.

   Synonyms: analyze, fractionate, distill

verb (used without object)

decomposed, decomposing 

1. to rot; putrefy.

   The egg began to decompose after a day in the sun.

decompose

/ ˌdiːkəmˈpəʊz, ˌdiːkɒmpəˈzɪʃən /

verb

1. to break down (organic matter) or (of organic matter) to be broken down physically and chemically by bacterial or fungal action; rot

2. chem to break down or cause to break down into simpler chemical compounds

3. to break up or separate into constituent parts

4. (tr) maths to express in terms of a number of independent simpler components, as a set as a canonical union of disjoint subsets, or a vector into orthogonal components

Other Word Forms

• decomposability noun
• decomposition noun
• decomposable adjective
• undecomposable adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of decompose¹

1745–55; < French décomposer, equivalent to dé- dis- ¹ + composer to compose

Synonym Study

See decay.

Example Sentences

The digitised photo is of a decomposed face and it is about to be run through a special algorithm for our BBC investigation.

From BBC

"I felt pain. I barely recognised him. His body was badly decomposing," Ms Odour, 40, said about her husband Samuel Owino Owoyo.

From BBC

The body of her baby girl Victoria was found decomposing in a shopping bag in Brighton in 2023.

From BBC

Working on weekends, the couple installed the pathways and mulched the soil after it had decomposed under the weight of the sheet mulching.

From Los Angeles Times

They will be sentenced on 15 September - more than two years after Victoria's decomposed body was discovered in a shopping bag in Brighton.

From BBC

Related Words

• break down 
• decay 
• disintegrate 
• dissolve 
• fall apart 
• molder