disarm
/dis'ɑ:m/
Definition
- Verb (transitive):
- To take weapons away from someone; to remove or reduce the means of attack: The primary meaning is to deprive a person, group, or nation of weapons or the ability to wage war.
- To make someone less hostile, angry, or suspicious; to win over through charm or persuasion: This figurative meaning refers to removing feelings of hostility or defensiveness.
- To remove the fuse or triggering mechanism from an explosive device; to make something harmless: This meaning applies to rendering a weapon or dangerous object safe.
Examples of Usage
- Verb (transitive):
- The police officers managed to disarm the suspect without anyone getting hurt.
- Her sincere apology disarmed his anger.
- The bomb squad worked quickly to disarm the device.
Advanced Usage
- "to disarm criticism": to remove the force or sting from criticism, often by addressing it effectively.
- The CEO's transparent report disarmed much of the shareholders' criticism.
- "to be disarming" (adjective form): having the effect of allaying suspicion or hostility.
- He has a disarming smile that makes people trust him immediately.
Variants and Related Words
- Disarmament (n): The act of reducing or eliminating military forces and weapons.
- The treaty led to the disarmament of the region.
- Disarmed (adj): The state of having had weapons removed or hostility neutralized.
- The disarmed soldiers were taken as prisoners.
- Disarming (adj): As described in 'Advanced Usage'.
Synonyms
- Demilitarize: To remove military forces or weapons from an area.
- Pacify: To bring peace or calm to; to soothe anger or agitation.
- Defuse: To make a situation less tense or dangerous (literally, to remove a fuse from a bomb).
Related Phrasal Verbs
(Note: "Disarm" is not commonly used with particles to form standard phrasal verbs. Its meanings are typically expressed directly.)
Related Idioms
- "To disarm someone with a smile/look": To use a friendly gesture to overcome someone's hostility or resistance.
- She disarmed the tense committee with a smile before beginning her presentation.
Verb
-
take away the weapons from; render harmless
-
make less hostile; win over
-
Her charm disarmed the prosecution lawyer completely
-
-
remove offensive capability from
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