condensed

condensed — adjective

1. describes a liquid food, usually milk or soup, that has had most of its water ta

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

describes a liquid food, usually milk or soup, that has had most of its water taken out so it becomes thick and sweet or strongly flavoured.

Example

Talia stirred two spoonfuls of condensed milk into her morning coffee.

collocation: condensed milk

The recipe asks for one tin of condensed tomato soup and a cup of cream.

collocation: condensed soup

Common collocations
  • condensed milk
  • condensed soup
  • condensed broth
  • sweetened condensed milk
  • tin of condensed milk
Synonyms
  • evaporated

    evaporated milk has water removed but no added sugar; condensed milk is usually sweetened

  • concentrated

    broader term for any liquid with water removed, including juice and cleaners

  • thickened

    describes the texture but doesn't imply water was specifically removed

Antonyms
  • diluted

    extra water has been added rather than taken out

  • fresh

    for milk specifically, untreated and full of water

Grammar Patterns

condensed + noun (food/liquid)

Usage Note

Almost always sits directly before a food noun (milk, soup, broth, cream). Rarely used as a predicative adjective on its own; cooks say 'the milk is condensed' only when contrasting with fresh milk.

Common Mistakes

I bought a tin of condense milk.
I bought a tin of condensed milk.
keep the -ed; 'condense' is the verb form.
The soup tastes very condensed.
The soup tastes very concentrated.
for general thickness of flavour, use 'concentrated'; 'condensed' usually labels the product itself.

2. if a text, story, or piece of information is condensed, it has been cut down so

2.adjectiveB2
Definition

if a text, story, or piece of information is condensed, it has been cut down so the same main ideas are presented in far fewer words.

Example

Mayumi gave the board a condensed version of the report that fit on one page.

collocation: condensed version

The library only had a condensed edition of War and Peace, missing about half the original chapters.

collocation: condensed edition

Common collocations
  • condensed version
  • condensed edition
  • condensed summary
  • condensed account
  • condensed history
Synonyms
  • abridged

    specifically used for books or recordings cut down for length

  • shortened

    general everyday word for any reduction in length

  • summarised

    implies the main points have been picked out and rewritten, not just trimmed

Antonyms
  • unabridged

    the full original text with nothing cut

  • expanded

    extra material has been added rather than removed

Grammar Patterns

condensed + noun (version/edition/account)

be condensed (into / from)

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 1: this sense always describes information or writing, never a liquid. The most frequent partner nouns are 'version', 'edition', 'summary', 'account', and 'history'.

Common Mistakes

I read the condensed of the novel.
I read the condensed version of the novel.
'condensed' is an adjective and needs a noun like 'version' or 'edition' after it.
Please give me a condensed about the meeting.
Please give me a condensed summary of the meeting.
pair with a content noun, not a preposition phrase alone.

3. if a gas or vapour is condensed, it has cooled and changed into liquid form (or

3.adjectiveC1
Definition

if a gas or vapour is condensed, it has cooled and changed into liquid form (or sometimes solid), the way steam turns to water on a cold window.

Example

By morning the warm bathroom air had cooled, and condensed water was running down the mirror.

collocation: condensed water

Joon watched as steam from the kettle was condensed into droplets on the cold metal lid.

passive: be condensed into [liquid]

Common collocations
  • condensed water
  • condensed vapour
  • condensed steam
  • be condensed into droplets
  • condensed on the surface
Synonyms
  • liquefied

    stronger and more technical; emphasises the change of state into liquid form

  • precipitated

    in chemistry, when a substance separates out from a solution or vapour

Antonyms
  • evaporated

    the opposite change: liquid turning into gas

  • vaporised

    more technical antonym, often used for fuels or chemicals

Grammar Patterns

be condensed (into / on)

condensed + noun (vapour/water)

Usage Note

Most common in science writing and technical descriptions. Often appears in passive constructions ('is condensed into', 'has condensed from'); the agent is usually a temperature drop or a cold surface, not a person.

Common Mistakes

The window has condensed water.
The window has condensation on it.
for the droplets themselves, the noun 'condensation' is more natural than 'condensed water'.
The steam was condensed by Joon.
Joon condensed the steam by cooling the lid.
when a person does it, prefer the active form; the passive sounds odd with a human agent.

Word family

  • condense
    verbB2
  • condensation
    nounB2
  • condenser
    nounC1
  • condensable
    adjectiveC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/2

All four words describe a text that is shorter than the original, but the focus differs. 'Shortened' is the plainest, everyday choice and only tells you the length is smaller — the cuts could be anywhere. 'Condensed' suggests the main ideas are kept and packed more tightly, so a condensed report still feels complete. 'Abridged' is almost always used for whole books or recordings (an abridged audiobook of Pride and Prejudice) and implies someone has officially cut sections out. 'Summarised' is the strongest rewrite: the original wording is replaced with a fresh, briefer description of the key points, often in another person's voice. So a manager might ask for a condensed report (same content, tighter), a publisher releases an abridged novel (chapters removed), and a student writes a summarised version of an article (rewritten in their own words).

condensed ↗abridgedsummarisedshortened

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • highly condensed
  • heavily condensed
  • neatly condensed
  • tightly condensed

Phrases

  • a condensed version of
  • in condensed form
  • be condensed into a single page

Prepositions

  • condensed into
  • condensed from
  • condensed onto

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

Comes from the Latin verb 'condensare', built from 'com-' (together) and 'densus' (thick, dense). It travelled through Old French 'condenser' into late Middle English in the 1400s, first describing things being pressed or packed together. The food sense (condensed milk) appeared in the 1850s with new factory methods of removing water from milk for storage. The text sense ('condensed novel') became common in the 1800s, and the physics sense (gas turning to liquid) was already in scientific use by the 1600s.