Meaning & use
solvent
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountablechemistry
A liquid, often water, that can dissolve other substances and so produce a mixture.
Grammar: Countable for a type (a solvent), uncountable for the substance.
Patterns
- a solvent for something
Water is the best solvent for sugar.
The painter cleaned his brushes with a solvent.
Alcohol is a common solvent in perfumes.
adjectivecomparablefinance
Having enough money to pay all that you owe.
Grammar: Used after a linking verb or before a noun: the company remained solvent.
Patterns
- stay solvent
- remain solvent
The shop barely stayed solvent through the winter.
A solvent business can pay its suppliers on time.
The bank needs to prove it is solvent.
Word forms
| plural | solvents |
|---|---|
| comparative | more solvent |
| superlative | most solvent |
Common combinations
- organic solvent
- Some organic solvents are dangerous to breathe.
- a universal solvent
- Water is often called the universal solvent.
- remain solvent
- The charity struggled to remain solvent.
- a cleaning solvent
- A cleaning solvent removed the grease.
- solvent abuse
- Schools teach students about the dangers of solvent abuse.
Synonyms and how they differ
- thinner
- Thinner is a paint product used to dilute paint, a narrower use than solvent.
- in the black
- In the black is a casual way to say you have more money than you owe, while solvent is formal.
- creditworthy
- Creditworthy means a lender would trust you to repay a loan, not that you currently hold enough funds.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: solvent or solute? solvent or solving?
solvent vs solute
A solute is the substance that dissolves; the solvent is the liquid that does the dissolving.
solvent vs solving
Solving is to find the answer to a problem, which sounds similar but has no link to money or liquids.
Practice
In a saltwater mixture, which part is the solvent?
Choose one answer.
The solvent is the liquid that dissolves the other substance, so here it is water. Salt is the solute.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “solvent”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.