What does electrolyse mean?
To electrolyse is to break a chemical substance down into its components by passing an electric current through it. The process, known as electrolysis, exploits the fact that many compounds — most famously water — can be split when current flows through them: positive ions migrate to the negative electrode and negative ions to the positive one. In practice, chemists and engineers electrolyse water to produce hydrogen and oxygen, electrolyse brine to make chlorine and caustic soda, and electrolyse metal salts to refine or plate metals. The word is strictly technical in register, appearing mainly in chemistry, industry, and discussions of green energy, where 'green hydrogen' means hydrogen made by electrolysing water with renewable power. It is transitive ('they electrolysed the solution') but also works intransitively ('the compound electrolyses readily'). American English typically spells it 'electrolyze'. Its relatives include the noun 'electrolysis', the adjective 'electrolytic', and the agent noun 'electrolyser'.
verbTo cause a chemical decomposition in a substance by passing an electric current through it; to subject something to electrolysis.
- To decompose a chemical compound, especially water or a salt solution, by passing an electric current through it (transitive use).
- (Intransitive) To undergo such electrical decomposition.
"The plant uses surplus solar power to electrolyse water into hydrogen and oxygen."
"Chemists first electrolysed water in 1800, revealing that it consists of hydrogen and oxygen."
"When molten sodium chloride is electrolysed, metallic sodium collects at the cathode."
Every green-hydrogen dream on the planet boils down to one verb: electrolyse — using clean electricity to rip water apart into fuel.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of electrolyse
The verb 'electrolyse' derives from 'electrolysis', a term coined in the early nineteenth century from Greek roots — 'ēlektron' meaning amber (the origin of 'electricity') and 'lysis' meaning loosening or dissolution. As scientists such as William Nicholson, Anthony Carlisle, Humphry Davy, and Michael Faraday developed the study of electrical decomposition in the early 1800s, the back-formed verb emerged to describe the act itself. It shares its '-lyse' element with words like 'analyse', 'catalyse', and 'hydrolyse', all ultimately tracing to the Greek verb 'luein', meaning to loosen or release.
Related word forms
How electrolyse is actually used
'Electrolyse' is chiefly a technical and scientific term, used almost exclusively in chemistry, metallurgy, and energy contexts. It carries no figurative or informal usage. The spelling 'electrolyze' is standard in American English, while 'electrolyse' predominates in British English.
Easily confused with electrolyse
'Electrolysis' is the noun naming the process itself, while 'electrolyse' is the verb describing the act of performing it.
An 'electrolyte' is a substance that conducts electricity when dissolved or molten, whereas 'electrolyse' is the action of decomposing a substance with electric current.