Desiccant
A substance or material that absorbs moisture from the air, used to keep products dry.
nounDesiccant
A substance or material that absorbs moisture from the air, used to keep products dry.
nounImagine This
A young kid is looking at his mother doing the laundry with the dryer but only sees it as a large white can. The mother puts the wet clothes into the can, and surprisingly, after a while, the clothes are all dry! The kid thinks to himself, “I think the machine is a drying agent. It makes the clothes dry. Yes! But that’s a can. Oh, I understand now… The can dries the clothes.”
Sounds Like
DES-ih-kant
Looks Like
A small canister or packet labeled 'Desiccant' with white or colorless crystals (e.g., silica gel).
Remember This
Desiccants, such as silica gel or clay, are used to keep goods dry in packaging. The related verb is desiccate and the noun form is desiccation.
Other Forms
Connect With
absorbent, moisture absorber, drying agent, silica gel, humidity control, desiccation
Note
Common mistakes: confuse desiccant with 'dehydrant' or with 'desiccate' (verb). A desiccant absorbs moisture, not the act of drying itself.
Study Deeper
- Silica gel is a common desiccant used in packaging to keep foods dry.
- The medicine bottle contained a small desiccant to prevent moisture damage during shipping.
From Latin desiccans, desiccant- 'drying up', from desiccare 'to dry up' (de- + siccare 'to dry').
DESICCANT: DESERTS DRAIN MOISTURE. Remember that a desiccant is the thing that makes things dry, like a desert that soaks up moisture.
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Acronym
nounA word formed from the initial letters of a phrase, pronounced as a single word and used as a shorthand for the full name (for example, NASA or radar).