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Glite Dictionary
🧑‍🦲 Preserving a body 🌵 Becoming dry and lifeless 🦶 Dry tissue death
mummification

mummification

1 9.3
A state or process of becoming dry, shriveled, and lifeless like a mummy
  • noun
  • /ˌmʌməfɪˈkeɪʃən/
translation icon : momificación
  • The scientist explained that the mummification of the remains was due to the dry conditions of the desert environment.

Examples

  • If I don't make it out of here, don't put me down for mummification.

    The Mummy (1999)

  • They should not be opposed but, on the contrary, should be welcomed as the only escape from agony, collapse, or mummification.

    Academic text (1993)

  • And then I will uproot institutions, will shove in your mouth... ... mummification and the rest of the body.

    Mr. Peabody & Sherman (2014)

  • So the rebellion against mummification is one of the many telling consequences of such a reorientation to existence.

  • Sadomasochistic scenes at Club Fuck included whipping and spanking, the application of clothespins to the flesh, and the bondage or mummification of the body.

    Academic text (2013)

  • The ancient Egyptians mastered the art of mummification to preserve their dead for the afterlife.

  • After years of neglect, the once vibrant painting was now in a state of mummification, its colors faded and lifeless.

Synonyms

embalmment
vsmummification
  • Specialized
9.9

A process that keeps a dead body from rotting by using chemicals

produces a dry shriveled state rather than only slowing decay

Antonyms

revitalization
  • US
14 5.8

Making a place or community active and healthy again

How Lifeless

mummification
1 9.3
rigidity
  • Specialized
3 6.0
staleness
1 3.9
vitality
29 4.3

Surface Forms

mummification singular
mummifications plural

Morphology

mummification = mummify (semi-transparent) = mummy + ify + ation

The figurative sense (becoming dry, lifeless, or rigid like a mummy) is an extension of the literal process but involves a metaphorical shift that is not fully predictable for all learners.

Etymology

The word mummification can also mean becoming dry and lifeless like a preserved body. Because mummy suggests a dried, preserved corpse, mummification is used for things that become rigid, shriveled, or stuck.