Delude vs. Dilute — What's the Difference?
By Tayyaba Rehman & Maham Liaqat — Updated on April 27, 2024
Delude refers to deceiving or misleading someone, while dilute means to make a substance thinner or weaker by adding water or another solvent.
Difference Between Delude and Dilute
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
Delude involves the act of misleading someone into believing something that is not true, often intentionally. On the other hand, dilute pertains to the process of reducing the concentration or potency of a substance by mixing it with another substance, typically a liquid.
To delude someone can affect their understanding or perceptions, creating false beliefs or misconceptions. Whereas, to dilute a solution does not change its fundamental components but alters its strength or intensity by adding more liquid.
Delusion is often used in psychological contexts to describe a condition where individuals persistently hold misleading or erroneous beliefs despite evidence to the contrary. Conversely, dilution is a common practice in chemistry and cooking, where precise adjustments in concentration are required for desired outcomes.
The consequences of deluding someone can be serious, affecting decisions, behaviors, and relationships based on misinformation. On the other hand, the act of diluting can be necessary for safety, such as diluting strong acids or bases to handle them more safely, or to achieve the correct flavor or texture in culinary recipes.
Delude typically carries a negative connotation, suggesting deceit or manipulation. In contrast, dilute is a neutral term that simply describes a change in concentration or makeup without implying any deceit.
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Comparison Chart
Definition
Mislead someone into believing something false
Reduce the concentration by adding more liquid
Contexts
Psychological, social
Chemical, culinary
Connotations
Negative, deceptive
Neutral, practical
Outcome
False beliefs, deception
Altered strength, safer or more palatable
Common Usage
Deluding thoughts, to delude oneself
Dilute a solution, dilute vinegar
Compare with Definitions
Delude
Self-Deception: The act of lying to oneself.
She deluded herself into believing that everything was fine.
Dilute
Culinary Technique: Adjusting flavor intensity in cooking.
Dilute the sauce to make it lighter for the pasta.
Delude
Mislead: To make someone believe something false.
He deluded himself into thinking he could cheat without consequences.
Dilute
Chemical Process: Used in labs to achieve desired chemical strength.
Carefully dilute the acid for the experiment.
Delude
Psychological Term: Often used in mental health to describe distorted perceptions.
Paranoid delusions made him distrust everyone.
Dilute
Safety Measure: Often done to make substances safer to handle.
Always dilute cleaning chemicals as directed.
Delude
Deception: Act of deceiving someone about the truth.
The con artist deluded the elderly couple into giving him their savings.
Dilute
Add Liquid: Introducing more liquid to reduce strength.
Dilute the juice with water to reduce sweetness.
Delude
Make (someone) believe something that is not true
Too many theorists have deluded the public
Dilute
Weaken Concentration: To make a liquid less concentrated.
Dilute the bleach with water before use.
Delude
To cause to hold a false belief; deceive thoroughly
Unscrupulous brokers who deluded their clients about the underlying value of the stocks they were touting.
Dilute
Make (a liquid) thinner or weaker by adding water or another solvent to it
Bleach can be diluted with cold water
Delude
(Obsolete) To elude or evade.
Dilute
(of a liquid) made thinner or weaker by having had water or another solvent added to it.
Delude
(Obsolete) To frustrate the hopes or plans of.
Dilute
To make thinner or less concentrated by adding a liquid such as water.
Delude
(transitive) To deceive into believing something which is false; to lead into error; to dupe.
Dilute
To lessen the force, strength, purity, or brilliance of, especially by admixture.
Delude
To frustrate or disappoint.
Dilute
To decrease the value of (shares of stock) by increasing the total number of shares.
Delude
To lead from truth or into error; to mislead the mind or judgment of; to beguile; to impose on; to dupe; to make a fool of.
To delude the nation by an airy phantom.
Dilute
Weakened; diluted.
Delude
To frustrate or disappoint.
It deludes thy search.
Dilute
(transitive) To make thinner by adding solvent to a solution, especially by adding water.
Delude
Be false to; be dishonest with
Dilute
(transitive) To weaken, especially by adding a foreign substance.
Delude
False Belief: Maintaining belief in something untrue.
They were deluded by promises of high returns on their investment.
Dilute
To cause the value of individual shares or the stake of a shareholder to decrease by increasing the total number of shares.
Dilute
(intransitive) To become attenuated, thin, or weak.
It dilutes easily.
Dilute
Having a low concentration.
Clean the panel with a dilute, neutral cleaner.
Dilute
Weak; reduced in strength by dilution; diluted.
Dilute
Of an animal: having a lighter-coloured coat than is usual.
A dilute calico
A cat with a dilute tortoiseshell coat
Dilute
An animal having a lighter-coloured coat than is usual.
Dilute
To make thinner or more liquid by admixture with something; to thin and dissolve by mixing.
Mix their watery store.With the chyle's current, and dilute it more.
Dilute
To diminish the strength, flavor, color, etc., of, by mixing; to reduce, especially by the addition of water; to temper; to attenuate; to weaken.
Lest these colors should be diluted and weakened by the mixture of any adventitious light.
Dilute
To become attenuated, thin, or weak; as, it dilutes easily.
Dilute
Diluted; thin; weak.
A dilute and waterish exposition.
Dilute
Lessen the strength or flavor of a solution or mixture;
Cut bourbon
Dilute
Corrupt, debase, or make impure by adding a foreign or inferior substance; often by replacing valuable ingredients with inferior ones;
Adulterate liquor
Dilute
Reduced in strength or concentration or quality or purity;
Diluted alcohol
A dilute solution
Dilute acetic acid
Common Curiosities
Is delusion the same as deception?
Delusion involves a personal belief that is false, while deception involves causing others to believe false information.
Can diluting a solution change its basic properties?
Diluting changes the concentration but not the chemical properties of the solution.
Can you delude yourself?
Yes, self-delusion refers to misleading oneself into believing incorrect or unfounded ideas.
What is the purpose of diluting food ingredients?
To adjust the intensity of flavors and make dishes more palatable.
Can deluding have legal implications?
Yes, deliberately deluding someone can lead to legal consequences, especially in cases of fraud.
What does it mean to delude someone?
To delude someone means to deceive them into believing something that is not true.
How does deluding affect a person?
Being deluded can lead to poor decisions based on incorrect perceptions or beliefs.
Why is it important to dilute certain chemicals?
Diluting chemicals can reduce their potency and make them safer to handle or use.
What is a common example of a diluted substance?
A common example is diluted vinegar used in cooking or cleaning.
Is dilution always done with water?
While water is the most common solvent, other liquids like alcohol can also be used for dilution depending on the substance.
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Written by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
Co-written by
Maham Liaqat
