Definition

1. Verb (transitive):

   • To make a substance alkaline; to increase the pH level of a substance, making it less acidic and more basic.

2. Verb (intransitive):

   • To become alkaline; for a substance to undergo a chemical change resulting in a higher pH level.

Usage

• As a transitive verb, "alkalinise" takes a direct object (the substance being changed).
• As an intransitive verb, it describes the process a substance undergoes.
• This term is primarily used in scientific, medical, and industrial contexts.

Examples

• Transitive Verb:

  • Farmers sometimes alkalinise the soil by adding lime to counteract excessive acidity.
  • The lab technician was instructed to alkalinise the solution before adding the next reagent.

• Intransitive Verb:

  • If left exposed to air, the chemical waste can alkalinise and become less hazardous.
  • The lake began to alkalinise due to the natural weathering of surrounding rocks.

Advanced Usage

• "Alkalinise" vs. "Alkalize": "Alkalinise" is the preferred spelling in British English, while "Alkalize" is more common in American English. Both have identical meanings.
• In Medical Contexts: The term can describe therapeutic interventions, such as giving a patient bicarbonate to their urine.

Variants and Related Words

• Alkalinisation (n) / Alkalization (n): The process or result of making something alkaline.
  • The alkalinisation of the water supply was necessary for the industrial process.
• Alkaline (adj): Having the properties of an alkali; basic.
  • Baking soda is an alkaline substance.
• Alkalinity (n): The state or quality of being alkaline.
  • They measured the alkalinity of the sample.

Synonyms

• Basify: To make basic (a more technical synonym).
• Neutralise (in specific contexts): While "neutralise" often means to make pH-neutral, it can imply making an acid less acidic, which is similar to alkalinising it.

Antonyms

• Acidify: To make or become acidic.
• Neutralise (in the sense of reaching pH 7): To make neither acidic nor alkaline.

Verb

1. make (a substance) alkaline
   • The oxide is alkalized
2. become alkaline