decomposing

From the verb decompose: (⇒ conjugate)

decomposing is: ⓘ

v pres p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

de•com•pose /ˌdikəmˈpoʊz/   v. [no obj], -posed, -pos•ing. 

1. to separate into the essential parts:
   Salt decomposes into sodium and chlorine.
2. Microbiology to rot; become decayed:
   the smell of decomposing vegetation.

de•com•po•si•tion /ˌdikɑmpəˈzɪʃən/  n. 

[uncountable] decomposition of leaves.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

de•com•pose  (dē′kəm pōz′), v., -posed, -pos•ing. 
v.t. 

1. to separate or resolve into constituent parts or elements;
   disintegrate:
   The bacteria decomposed the milk into its solid and liquid elements.

v.i. 

2. Microbiology to rot;
   putrefy:
   The egg began to decompose after a day in the sun.

• French décomposer, equivalent. to dé- dis-¹ + composer to compose
• 1745–55

de′com•pos′a•ble, adj. 
de′com•pos′a•bil′i•ty, n. 
Synonyms

• 1. distill, fractionate, analyze.
• 2. See decay. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

decompose / ˌdiːkəmˈpəʊz/ verb

1. to break down (organic matter) or (of organic matter) to be broken down physically and chemically by bacterial or fungal action; rot
2. to break down or cause to break down into simpler chemical compounds
3. to break up or separate into constituent parts

decomposition / ˌdiːkɒmpəˈzɪʃən/ noun