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imbibition

imbibition

9.9
The taking in of liquid, for example when seeds take in water
  • noun
  • /ɪmˌbɪbɪˈʃən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : imbibición
  • The plant's growth improved significantly after the process of imbibition allowed it to absorb water from the soil.

Examples

  • Imbibition, we learn, is a time when condensing vapors descend upon sophic earth in the bottom of the vessel.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • After imbibition, the gel effectively absorbed the liquid, transforming into a soft and flexible material.

  • I listened so often, with a pre-adolescent capacity for rote retention, that I learned every word and note of the corpus by pure imbibition, without a moment of conscious effort.

    Academic text (2000)
  • During imbibition, the dried fruit swelled as it took in water, becoming plump and juicy.

Synonyms

intake
vsimbibition
56 3.0

How much food and drink a person eats or drinks

includes passive material soaking as well as oral taking of liquids
absorption
vsimbibition
  • Specialized
10 3.9

The body takes nutrients from digested food into the blood

covers liquids taken in by materials or by drinking rather than only nutrients
uptake
vsimbibition
  • Specialized
6 5.1

The body takes in a substance like food or liquid

is more general, covering both material soaking and drinking
water absorption
vsimbibition
  • Specialized
1 3.5

The amount of water a material takes in, shown by weight gain after soaking

focuses on absorbing or drinking liquids in various contexts
instillation
vsimbibition
  • Specialized
8.4

Putting liquid drop by drop into a body part like an eye or ear

is about passive material soaking or drinking rather than deliberate liquid placement

Antonyms

3 3.4

Removing water from food or other things to make them dry

How Absorbent

saturation
4 4.7
imbibition
  • Specialized
9.9
absorption
  • Specialized
21 4.6
nonabsorbency
  • Specialized
8.9

Surface Forms

imbibition singular
imbibitions plural

Morphology

imbibition = imbibe (transparent) = imbibe + ition

Formed by nominalization of the verb 'imbibe' with the suffix '-ition', meaning the act or process of imbibing, which is a regular derivation.

Etymology

Imbibition comes from the Latin parts im- 'in' and bibere 'to drink', and it is the same idea as imbibe — literally 'drink in'. So, think of a seed or a sponge 'drinking' water: when a material soaks up liquid and swells, that process is called 'imbibition'.