mercerize
verb /ˈmɜːsəraɪz/
/ˈmɜːrsəraɪz/
(British English also mercerise)
Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they mercerize | /ˈmɜːsəraɪz/ /ˈmɜːrsəraɪz/ |
| he / she / it mercerizes | /ˈmɜːsəraɪzɪz/ /ˈmɜːrsəraɪzɪz/ |
| past simple mercerized | /ˈmɜːsəraɪzd/ /ˈmɜːrsəraɪzd/ |
| past participle mercerized | /ˈmɜːsəraɪzd/ /ˈmɜːrsəraɪzd/ |
| -ing form mercerizing | /ˈmɜːsəraɪzɪŋ/ /ˈmɜːrsəraɪzɪŋ/ |
- mercerize something to treat cotton cloth or thread with a chemical to make it stronger and more shinyWord Originmid 19th cent.: from the name of John Mercer (died 1866), said to have invented the process + -ize.