- to act upon by catalysis.
Also especially British, cat·a·lyse.
Origin of catalyze
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
1890, back-formation from catalysis on model of analyze/analysis. Related: Catalyzed; catalyzing. Probably influenced by French catalyser (1842).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
- To modify, especially to increase, the rate of a chemical reaction by catalysis.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
- To modify, especially to increase, the rate of a chemical reaction through the action of a catalyst.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.