What does "discharge" mean?
The act of expelling or letting go.; The act of releasing an inpatient from hospital.
Discharge
/dɪsˈtʃɑːdʒ/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Top 500 ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The act of expelling or letting go.; The act of releasing an inpatient from hospital.
- Grammar: discharge is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: dismissal, emission, firing, liberation.
- Useful contrasts: binding legal rule, dutch power, electrifying.
- Usage evidence: The crowd obstructed the police in the discharge of their duties.
How to use "discharge"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "discharge" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "discharge" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "discharge" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "discharge" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
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- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "discharge" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "dismissal" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "discharge", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The act of expelling or letting go.; The act of releasing an inpatient from hospital. countable, uncountable
"care transition after discharge"
- 2 the act of discharging a gun wordnet
- 3 The act of expelling or letting go.; The act of releasing a member of the armed forces from service. countable, uncountable
"career transition after discharge"
- 4 a formal written statement of relinquishment wordnet
- 5 The material thus released. countable, uncountable
"Near-synonyms: effluent, effluence (sometimes synonymous)"
Show 15 more definitions
- 6 the termination of someone's employment (leaving them free to depart) wordnet
- 7 The act of firing a projectile, especially from a firearm. countable, uncountable
"negligent discharge"
- 8 the act of venting wordnet
- 9 The process of removing the load borne by something. countable, uncountable
- 10 the sudden giving off of energy wordnet
- 11 The process of flowing out. countable, uncountable
- 12 the pouring forth of a fluid wordnet
- 13 The process of flowing out.; Pus or exudate or mucus (but in modern usage not exclusively blood) from a wound or orifice, usually due to pathological or hormonal changes. uncountable
"Near-synonyms: effluent, effluence (sometimes synonymous)"
- 14 electrical conduction through a gas in an applied electric field wordnet
- 15 The act of releasing an accumulated charge. countable, uncountable
- 16 any of several bodily processes by which substances go out of the body wordnet
- 17 The volume of water transported by a river in a certain amount of time, usually in units of m³/s (cubic meters per second). countable, uncountable
- 18 a substance that is emitted or released wordnet
- 19 The act of accomplishing (an obligation) or repaying a debt etc.; performance. countable, uncountable
"Whereof what's past is prologue, what to come / In yours and my discharge."
- 20 Release from liability, as granted to someone having served in a position of trust, such as to the officers and governors of a corporate body. countable, uncountable
"After having granted discharge from liability, the general meeting of shareholders may not demand for the company compensation for matters which it had knowledge of when granting discharge."
Verb
- 1 To accomplish or complete, as an obligation.
"O most dear mistress, / The sun will set before I shall discharge / What I must strive to do."
- 2 eliminate (a substance) wordnet
- 3 To free of a debt, claim, obligation, responsibility, accusation, etc.; to absolve; to acquit; to forgive; to clear.
"But in deede, the ſecret cauſe that brought Ageſilaus to conſent vnto this practiſe, was the greatnes of his dette which he ought, of the which he hoped to be diſcharged by chaunging of the ſtate and common wealth."
- 4 become empty or void of its content wordnet
- 5 To send away (a creditor) satisfied by payment; to pay one's debt or obligation to.
"If he had / The present money to discharge the Jew."
Show 25 more definitions
- 6 pronounce not guilty of criminal charges wordnet
- 7 To set aside; to annul; to dismiss.
"The order for Daly's attendance was discharged."
- 8 release from military service wordnet
- 9 To expel or let go.
"Feeling in other cases discharges itself in indirect muscular actions."
- 10 cause to go off wordnet
- 11 To let fly, as a missile; to shoot.
"They do discharge their shot of courtesy."
- 12 go off or discharge wordnet
- 13 To release (an accumulated charge).
"GWR plans to use it on the Greenford branch in west London, making use of a fast charger at West Ealing that will charge the batteries in just three and a half minutes. This fast charger is essentially a battery installed at the lineside which is trickle-charged from the electricity grid. It can then discharge quickly into the train's batteries through charging rails and then start recharging itself while the train is running in service."
- 14 pour forth or release wordnet
- 15 To relieve of an office or employment; to send away from service; to dismiss.
"Discharge the common sort / With pay and thanks."
- 16 remove the charge from wordnet
- 17 To relieve of an office or employment; to send away from service; to dismiss.; To release (an inpatient) from hospital.
- 18 remove (cargo, people, etc.) from and leave wordnet
- 19 To relieve of an office or employment; to send away from service; to dismiss.; To release (a member of the armed forces) from service.
- 20 free from obligations or duties wordnet
- 21 To release legally from confinement; to set at liberty.
"to discharge a prisoner"
- 22 complete or carry out wordnet
- 23 To operate (any weapon that fires a projectile, such as a shotgun or sling).
"discharge his pieces"
- 24 To release (an auxiliary assumption) from the list of assumptions used in arguments, and return to the main argument.
- 25 To unload a ship or another means of transport.
- 26 To put forth, or remove, as a charge or burden; to take out, as that with which anything is loaded or filled.
"to discharge a cargo"
- 27 To give forth; to emit or send out.
"A pipe discharges water."
- 28 To let fly; to give expression to; to utter.
"He discharged a horrible oath."
- 29 To bleach out or to remove or efface, as by a chemical process. transitive
"to discharge the colour from a dyed fabric in order to form light figures on a dark background"
- 30 To prohibit; to forbid. Scotland, obsolete
"That Richard Stevenson, Robert Calcott, and Richard Tyldesley, be discharged from farther restraint, giving good security to appear at this Board whensoever summoned, and not depart this city until full satisfaction be given"
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"The crowd obstructed the police in the discharge of their duties."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "discharge"?
Common synonyms include: dismissal, emission, firing, liberation, release, abide by.
How do you use "discharge" in a sentence?
The crowd obstructed the police in the discharge of their duties.
How do you pronounce "discharge"?
Pronounced /dɪsˈtʃɑːdʒ/.
Etymology
From Middle English dischargen, from Old French deschargier (“to unload”), from Late Latin discarricāre (“unload”). By surface analysis, dis- + charge.