What is the definition of evaporation?

Beginners

Evaporation is the process where a liquid turns into a gas or vapor. This can happen when the liquid is heated, or when it's exposed to air or wind. When water evaporates, it turns into water vapor and disappears into the air.

Intermediate

Evaporation is the process of a liquid changing into a gas or vapor due to an increase in temperature or a decrease in pressure. As the temperature of a liquid increases, the particles within it gain energy and move more quickly, leading to some of them escaping into the surrounding atmosphere as a gas. Evaporation is a common natural process that occurs when the sun heats up bodies of water and even moist soil, causing them to gradually disappear over time. It is also used in industry to separate substances and to create pure liquids.

Advanced

For advanced learners, the definition of 'evaporation' could be as follows: Evaporation is a physical process in which a substance, typically a liquid, transforms into its gaseous form due to an increase in temperature or a decrease in pressure. During this process, the molecules of the substance gain enough thermal energy to escape from the liquid phase and move into the surrounding atmosphere as vapor. Evaporation is a natural phenomenon that occurs in many different settings, including in the atmosphere (resulting in cloud formation), bodies of water (resulting in the water cycle), and in industrial processes (such as in the production of certain chemicals).