Meaning of ABSORPTION
| Pronunciation: | | ab'sorpshun
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 WordNet Dictionary |
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- [n] the mental state of being preoccupied by something
- [n] complete attention; intense mental effort
- [n] (chemistry) a process in which one substance permeates another; a fluid permeates or is dissolved by a liquid or solid
- [n] (physics) the process in which incident radiated energy is retained without reflection or transmission on passing through a medium; "the absorption of photons by atoms or molecules"
- [n] the process of absorbing nutrients into the body after digestion
- [n] the social process of absorbing one cultural group into harmony with another
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| | Synonyms: | | assimilation, concentration, engrossment, immersion, preoccupancy, preoccupation, soaking up |
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| | See Also: | | absentmindedness, abstractedness, abstraction, action, activity, Americanisation, Americanization, attention, biological process, centering, cognitive state, direction, Europeanisation, Europeanization, extinction, focus, focusing, focussing, imbibition, malabsorption, natural action, natural process, organic process, social process, sorption, specialism, state of mind, study, Westernisation, Westernization | |
| Webster's 1913 Dictionary |
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| | Definition: | | \Ab*sorp"tion\, n. [L. absorptio, fr. absorbere. See
{Absorb}.]
1. The act or process of absorbing or sucking in anything, or
of being absorbed and made to disappear; as, the
absorption of bodies in a whirlpool, the absorption of a
smaller tribe into a larger.
2. (Chem. & Physics) An imbibing or reception by molecular or
chemical action; as, the absorption of light, heat,
electricity, etc.
3. (Physiol.) In living organisms, the process by which the
materials of growth and nutrition are absorbed and
conveyed to the tissues and organs.
4. Entire engrossment or occupation of the mind; as,
absorption in some employment.
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| Medical Dictionary |
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| | Definition: | | the way substances pass into tissue as nutrients from food move from the small intestine into the cells of the body. |
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| Biology Dictionary |
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| | Definition: | | The process of absorbing; specifically:
- In physiology, it refers to the movement of liquids and solutes into cells by way of diffusion or osmosis.
- In chemistry, it refers to the drawing of a gas or liquid into the pores of a permeable solid.
- In immunology, it refers to a process in which an antigen or antibody is used to pull an analogous antigen or antibody out of a solution.
Compare adsorption. |
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| Thesaurus Terms |
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| | Related Terms: | | ablation, absence of mind, absentmindedness, absorbed attention, absorbency, absorbent, abstractedness, abstraction, adsorbent, adsorption, application, assimilation, attrition, bemusement, bile, blotter, blotting, blotting paper, brown study, burning up, castle-building, chemisorption, chemosorption, close study, concentration, consumption, contemplation, contemplativeness, daydream, daydreamer, daydreaming, deep study, deep thought, depletion, depth of thought, digestion, digestive system, drain, dream, dreaming, eating up, embarrassment, endosmosis, engagement, engrossment, enmeshment, entanglement, erosion, exhaustion, exosmosis, expending, expenditure, fantasy, fantasying, finishing, fit of abstraction, gastric juice, gastrointestinal tract, imbibing, immersion, implication, impoverishment, inclusion, infiltration, ingestion, intentness, intestinal juice, involution, involvement, liver, meditation, melancholy, monomania, mooning, moonraking, muse, musefulness, musing, muted ecstasy, obsession, osmosis, pancreas, pancreatic digestion, pancreatic juice, pensiveness, percolation, pipe dream, pipe-dreaming, predigestion, preoccupation, profound thought, rapt attention, reflectiveness, relation, reverie, saliva, salivary digestion, salivary glands, secondary digestion, seepage, single-mindedness, soaking-up, sorption, speculativeness, spending, sponge, sponging, squandering, stargazing, studiousness, study, submersion, taking-in, thoughtfulness, trance, using up, Walter Mitty, wastage, waste, wastefulness, wasting away, wearing away, wearing down, wistfulness, woolgathering |
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