emulsify [L, emulgere, to milk out, facere, to make] , to disperse a liquid into another liquid with which it is immiscible, making a colloidal suspension. Soaps and detergents emulsify by surrounding small globules of fat, preventing them from settling out. Bile acts as an emulsifying agent in the digestive tract by dispersing ingested fats into small globules. −emulsification, n.
