dematerialize
C2Formal, Technical, Literary
Definition
Meaning
To cease to have a physical form; to disappear or vanish.
1. (Finance) To replace physical certificates for securities with electronic records. 2. (Technology/Environment) To reduce or eliminate the need for physical materials or goods, often through digitization.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Primarily used as an intransitive verb ('the ghost dematerialized'). In finance, it can be transitive ('to dematerialize shares'). It often implies a sudden, complete, and sometimes mysterious disappearance.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
The primary difference is in spelling. British English predominantly uses 'dematerialise' with an 's', while American English uses 'dematerialize' with a 'z'.
Connotations
Slightly more common in British English in literary/paranormal contexts (e.g., ghost stories). The financial/technical sense is equally used in both varieties.
Frequency
Low-frequency in both dialects, but understood by educated speakers. More likely to be encountered in specialized texts (finance, sci-fi, technology) than in everyday conversation.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
Something dematerializes (intransitive).An organization dematerializes shares/records (transitive).Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “None commonly associated.”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Refers to the electronic conversion of paper-based assets like share certificates.
Academic
Used in discussions of digitalization, post-humanism, or the philosophy of mind regarding the body.
Everyday
Rare. Might be used humorously or dramatically for something that has gone missing. 'My phone seems to have dematerialized!'
Technical
In physics or sci-fi, describes matter converting into energy or data.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The company will dematerialise all share certificates by next quarter.
- In the story, the phantom would dematerialise at dawn.
American English
- Brokerages require stocks to be dematerialized for electronic trading.
- The sci-fi hero watched the transporter beam dematerialize him.
adverb
British English
- The figure vanished dematerialisingly into the mist. (Extremely rare/poetic)
American English
- (No standard adverbial form. Use phrases like 'in a dematerialized form'.)
adjective
British English
- The dematerialised shares were held in a central depository.
- She described a dematerialised essence, not a physical form.
American English
- Dematerialized assets are safer from physical damage.
- The artist explored dematerialized concepts in her digital exhibition.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The magician made the rabbit dematerialize.
- My savings didn't dematerialize; I just spent them.
- Modern banking aims to dematerialize transactions to increase efficiency.
- The ghost was said to dematerialize when sunlight touched it.
- The trend towards a dematerialized economy reduces the consumption of physical resources.
- Philosophers debate whether consciousness could ever dematerialize from its biological substrate.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think: 'DE-' (remove) + 'MATERIAL' (physical stuff) + '-IZE' (make into) = to remove the physical stuff, making it disappear.
Conceptual Metaphor
EXISTENCE IS PHYSICAL PRESENCE / DISAPPEARING IS BECOMING IMMATERIAL.
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid direct calque from 'дематериализоваться' which is extremely rare. Use 'исчезать', 'растворяться'. In finance, use 'переводить в бездокументарную форму'.
Common Mistakes
- Using it as a casual synonym for 'lose' (e.g., 'I dematerialized my keys').
- Confusing it with 'disembody' (which refers specifically to spirit/consciousness).
Practice
Quiz
In which context is 'dematerialize' used most literally and technically?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
It is a more specific and formal synonym. 'Vanish' is general. 'Dematerialize' emphasizes the loss of physical substance, often suddenly or mysteriously.
It's uncommon and sounds formal or dramatic. In casual talk, 'disappear' or 'vanish' is more natural unless you're being humorous or referring to finance/technology.
Dematerialization (US) / Dematerialisation (UK).
Yes. Generally, it means 'to disappear'. In finance, it's a specific, non-mysterious process of converting physical documents into electronic records; the asset still exists, just not on paper.