Dictionary

erode en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /ɪˈɹəʊd/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /ɪˈɹoʊd/ (Canada, General-American)
• /ɪˈɹəʉd/ (Australia)
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

From French éroder, from Latin ērōdō.

Meanings

1. To wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction.
   • The cliff is gradually being eroded by the waves.
2. (figuratively) To destroy gradually by an ongoing process.
   • to erode a person’s trust
   • We've been worried about adolescents' diminishing writing and speaking skills for years. Lately, we have noticed that these skills are eroding at an accelerating rate, month-over-month. 2025 December 9, Rachel Konrad and Matt Abrahams, “Why Young People Are Struggling to Communicate”, in TIME:
   • to erode society’s morals

Forms

Deriveds

erodible · reerode · bioerode · noneroding · erodable · eroder

Relateds

erosion

Synonyms

corrode · undermine · denude · eat away · eat away · corrode · gnaw

Translations (38)

uk еродува́ти (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nl corroderen (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · pt erodir (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nl inbijten (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · it rodere (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · it erodere (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · cmn 侵蝕 /侵蚀 (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · be эрадзі́раваць (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · de erodieren (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · fi kuluttaa (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nl verweren (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · sv erodera (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · bg разяждам (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · vi xâm thực (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · cmn 腐蝕 /腐蚀 (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · yi אַוועקשווענקען (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nl uitbijten (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nl uitslijten (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · fi syövyttää (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · vi xói mòn (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · es erosionar (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nn erodere (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nb erodere (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · it corrodere (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · fi jäytää (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · bg еродирам (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · vi ăn mòn (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · ru эроди́ровать (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nl aanvreten (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nl afslijten (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · da erodere (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · mi ngāhorohoro (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · fr éroder (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nl aantasten (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nn erodera (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · mi weku (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · nl eroderen (to wear away by abrasion, corrosion, or chemical reaction) · sv urholka ((figurative) To destroy gradually)