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Glite Dictionary
💧 Able to absorb 🧠 Able to integrate
assimilative

assimilative

7.9
That can take in light, gas or liquid
  • adjective
  • /əˈsɪməˌleɪtɪv/
translation icon : asimilativo
  • Rather, environmental education curricula have largely been implicitly designed around the principles of assimilative capacity and control theory—that is, that there are some safe levels of human intervention (e.g., pollution) in the environment and that these levels can be identified.
  • assimilative capacity

Examples

  • These targets are usually based on the assimilative capacity of the environment (such as the ability of soil to dissipate acidifying pollutants).

    Academic text (1996)

  • Local governments have the ability to ensure that their built and natural systems do not exceed their respective assimilative capacities.

    Academic text (2001)

  • First, the cumulative loads on Earth's biogeochemical cycles and ecosystems could exceed natural assimilative capacities.

    Academic text (1999)

  • The assimilative processes in nature help maintain a balance in ecosystems by absorbing excess nutrients.

  • Plants have an assimilative ability that allows them to take in carbon dioxide during photosynthesis.

  • The lake's assimilative capacity determines how much waste it can safely absorb without harm.

Synonyms

absorbent
vsassimilative
10 3.4

Able to soak up liquid easily

is more about taking in and keeping substances rather than incorporating them into solution
absorptive
vsassimilative
1 6.8

Able to take in liquids or energy, like a sponge

focuses on incorporating substances into a solution or into itself
absorbable
vsassimilative
1 4.6

Able to go into a material through its surface, for example skin or fabric

is about absorbing or incorporating into a solution or itself, not just through surfaces
assimilable
vsassimilative
  • Specialized
1 8.1

A substance the body can absorb and use

is broader, applying to absorption into solutions or into the material itself
assimilatory
vsassimilative
  • Specialized
9.9

Able to take in things like light or nutrients and make them part of a living thing

is broader, meaning absorb or incorporate substances in general situations
resorptive
vsassimilative
  • Specialized
9.2

Able to absorb or break down material in body tissues

is about general absorption or incorporation into solutions or into itself

Compounds

surface-assimilative
  • Specialized
9.9

Causes liquids or tiny bits to stick to a surface

How Absorptive

absorptive
1 6.8
assimilative
7.9
resistant
61 4.2
impermeable
4 6.6

Surface Forms

assimilative positive

Morphology

assimilative = assimilate (transparent) = assimilate + ive

The adjective is directly formed from the verb 'assimilate' with the productive suffix '-ive' meaning 'tending or able to', so the physical sense is derivable from the verb.

Etymology

The word assimilative comes from Latin parts ad- 'to' and similis 'like', the same root as similar. So an assimilative material takes other things in and makes them part of itself, which explains how it absorbs gases, light, or liquids.