disintegrate

Disintegrate is a verb meaning to break apart into smaller pieces, to lose cohesion, or to fall apart in some way. It can describe physical fragmentation of solids, chemical dissolution, or the gradual decay of structures or systems. The related noun disintegration refers to the process or result.

In everyday use, something that disintegrates breaks into fragments or dissolves in a medium: a bone may disintegrate under chemical or physical stress, a tablet disintegrates in the digestive system, and stone may disintegrate through weathering. In materials science, disintegration can result from mechanical stress, corrosion, fatigue, or thermal cycling, leading to fragmentation or erosion.

In pharmacology, disintegration is a planned step in the release of a drug. Oral dosage forms are designed to disintegrate within a certain time in gastric or intestinal fluids; disintegration, aided by disintegrants, precedes dissolution and absorption. The disintegration test in pharmacopeias assesses whether a tablet breaks apart within a specified period.

In nuclear and particle physics, disintegration is used to describe processes in which a nucleus or particle decays into smaller constituents. Radioactive decay is sometimes described as disintegration, though the term is common in broader scientific language and may be used in nontechnical contexts.

There are also metaphorical uses, such as the disintegration of a system, institution, or social order, referring to erosion of coherence or viability.