Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
💧 High-pressure solution 💪 Tense muscles
hypertonic

hypertonic

1 7.8
A solution with more dissolved salt that makes water leave cells
  • adjective
  • /ˌhaɪpərˈtɒnɪk/
  • Specialized
translation icon : hipertónico
  • When the plant cells were placed in a hypertonic solution, they shriveled due to the loss of water.
  • hypertonic saline

Examples

  • The use of the intranasal hypertonic Dead Sea saline solution in our study resulted in some moderate but clinically and statistically significant improvement in post-treatment RQLQ scores.

    Academic text (2005)

  • Our data suggest that the use of intranasal hypertonic Dead Sea saline solution in a spray form results in a moderate reduction of symptoms and a moderate improvement in overall quality of life in patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis, and that it is probably useful in patients with mild-to-moderate symptoms.

    Academic text (2005)

  • I gave him a hypertonic solution.

    Bringing Out the Dead (1999)

  • I gave him a hypertonic solution.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • The effects of intranasal hypertonic saline solutions are less clear.

    Academic text (2005)

  • The patients inhaled hypertonic saline to induce sputum, and selected sputum was analyzed.

    Academic text (2000)

  • We believe ours is the first study to demonstrate the possible efficacy of intranasal hypertonic Dead Sea saline solution in alleviating symptoms and improving overall quality of life in patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis.

    Academic text (2005)

  • Nasal irrigation with saline, including hypertonic saline, has long been recommended for the treatment of sinonasal disease, and it has been shown to have a positive effect on the physiology of the nasal mucosa.

    Academic text (2005)

  • The lab technician prepared a hypertonic solution to help draw water out of the cells during the experiment.

  • Doctors used a hypertonic saline solution to treat the patient with pulmonary edema, aiming to reduce fluid in the lungs.

Antonyms

hypotonic
  • Specialized
7.6

A liquid with fewer dissolved substances than another so cells take in water

isotonic
  • Specialized
6.8

A liquid with the same salt and water balance as human blood

Compounds

hypertonic solution
  • Specialized
6.1

A liquid with more salt or sugar than a cell that draws water out and makes the cell shrink

How Concentrated

hypertonic
  • Specialized
1 7.8
isotonic
  • Specialized
6.8
hypotonic
  • Specialized
7.6

Surface Forms

hypertonic positive

Morphology

hypertonic = tonic (semi-transparent) = hyper + tonic

The word is structurally hyper- + tonic, but the medical sense depends on the specialized meaning of tonic/tone, so it is only partly transparent.

Etymology

Hypertonic comes from the Greek parts hyper- meaning 'over' or 'too much' and tonic from tonos meaning 'stretch' or 'tension'. Think of it as 'too much tension' in a liquid — that extra 'pull' draws water out of cells, so the cells shrink.