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n. 1. The act or procedure of liquefying or melting by the application of heat. 2. The liquid or melted state induced by heat. 3. a. The merging of different elements into a union: the fusion of copper and zinc to form brass; the difficult fusion of conflicting political factions. b. A union resulting from fusing: A fusion of religion and politics emerged. 4. Physics A nuclear reaction in which atomic nuclei combine to form more massive nuclei with the simultaneous release of energy. 5. Music that blends jazz elements and the heavy repetitive rhythms of rock. Also called jazz-fusion, jazz-rock. 6. A style of cooking that combines ingredients and techniques from very different cultures or countries. [Latin fūsiō, fūsiōn-, from fūsus, past participle of fundere, to melt; see gheu- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]  (click for a larger image) fusion |
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