Concentrating
ˈkɒnsəntreɪtɪŋ
Definitions
3 meaningsTo give all of your attention to something; to focus.
ˈkɒnsəntreɪt
To focus one's attention or mental effort on a particular thing.
He couldn't concentrate on the lesson because of the noise.
💡 Simply: It's like when you're playing a video game and you really, REALLY want to win, so you ignore everything else to focus on the game! That's concentrating!
👶 For kids: When you try really, really hard to think about one thing.
More Examples
I need to concentrate if I want to finish my homework.
The athlete concentrated on the finish line.
How It's Used
"She was concentrating on her book."
"The students need to concentrate during the exam."
"We need to concentrate our efforts on this project."
To bring together in one place; to gather or collect in a mass or body.
ˈkɒnsəntreɪt
To bring or draw to a common center or point.
The general concentrated his troops before the battle.
💡 Simply: Imagine you are gathering all the apples from many trees into a single basket. That's like concentrating your forces or resources - bringing them all together in one place.
👶 For kids: Bringing things together in one spot.
More Examples
The company concentrated its investments.
They concentrated the orange juice into a smaller volume.
How It's Used
"The army concentrated its forces in the south."
"The company concentrated its resources on a new product line."
To increase the proportion of a substance in a solution.
ˈkɒnsəntreɪt
To increase the strength of a solution by removing a solvent.
The laboratory technician concentrated the sample.
💡 Simply: Like making juice stronger by removing some of the water! You're concentrating the flavor.
👶 For kids: Making a drink or food stronger by taking some of the liquid out.
More Examples
The process of concentrating the juice preserved it for a longer time.
We concentrated the solution by removing water.
How It's Used
"The chemist concentrated the solution by evaporation."
"Orange juice is often concentrated for shipping."
From the Latin "concentrare," meaning "to center together." It evolved through French, taking on meanings related to focusing and gathering.
Used since the 16th century with meanings related to focusing attention and gathering.
Memory tip
Imagine a magnifying glass: it concentrates light into a focused point, just like concentrating your mind.
Practice
Word Origin
Root: center
Prefix: con- (together, with)