discharge
verb
Pronunciation: /dɪsˈtʃɑːdʒ/
- 1tell (someone) officially that they can or must leave, in particular:
- allow (a patient) to leave hospital because they are judged fit: Mark was taken away in an ambulance but later discharged
- dismiss from the armed forces or police: his memory was impaired and he was discharged from the RAF
- release from the custody or restraint of the law: she was conditionally discharged for two years at Oxford Crown Court
- relieve (a juror or jury) from serving in a case: if the jury cannot agree, it should be discharged
- 2allow (a liquid, gas, or other substance) to flow out from where it has been confined: industrial plants discharge highly toxic materials into rivers
- (of an orifice or diseased tissue) emit (pus or other liquid): the swelling will eventually break down and discharge pus
- Physics release or neutralize the electric charge of (an electric field, battery, or other object): the electrostatic field that builds up on a monitor screen can be discharged
- (of a person) fire (a gun or missile): when you shoot you can discharge as many barrels as you wish
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- unload (goods or passengers) from a ship: the ferry was discharging passengers
- allow (an emotion) to be expressed: he discharged his resentment in the harmless form of memoirs
- 3do all that is required to perform (a duty) or fulfil (a responsibility): the bank had failed to discharge its supervisory duties
- pay off (a debt): the executor must discharge the funeral expenses
- release (a party) from a contract or obligation: the insurer is discharged from liability from the day of breach
- Law relieve (a bankrupt) of residual liability: first-time bankrupts are discharged automatically after three years
noun
Pronunciation: /ˈdɪstʃɑːdʒ, dɪsˈtʃɑːdʒ/
- 1the action of discharging someone from a hospital or from the armed forces or police: referrals can be discussed before discharge from hospital
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- 2the action of discharging a liquid, gas, or other substance: those germs might lead to vaginal discharge
- a substance that has been discharged: industrial discharge has turned the river into an open sewer
- Physics the release of electricity from a charged object: slow discharge of a condenser is fundamental to oscillatory circuits
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- the action of firing a gun or missile: a police permit for discharge of an air gun
- the action of unloading a ship: freight for discharge
- 3the action of doing all that is required to fulfil a responsibility or perform a duty: directors must use skill in the discharge of their duties
- the payment of a debt: money paid in discharge of a claim
- Law the relief of a bankrupt from residual liability: machinery to rehabilitate the bankrupt through the process of discharge
Origin:
Middle English (in the sense 'relieve of an obligation'): from Old French descharger, from late Latin discarricare 'unload', from dis- (expressing reversal) + carricare 'to load' (see charge)