D defs.my
Entry 3 senses Webster, 1913

defuse

/(dē̇*fūz")/ · de·fuse · IPA /diːˈfjuːz/
01 v. t. To disorder; to make shapeless.
  1. 1.
    To disorder; to make shapeless.[Obs.]
  2. 2.
    To remove the fuse from; to deactivate (a bomb or other explosive device) or make it ineffective.
  3. 3.
    To make less dangerous; as, to defuse a tense confrontation between demonstrators and police.
Syn. deactivate.