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Glite Dictionary
immersion foot

immersion foot

9.2
A foot injury from being in cold, wet places for a long time without freezing
  • noun
  • /ɪˈmɜrʒən fʊt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : pie de inmersión
  • After hiking in the rain for hours, he developed immersion foot, causing his feet to become numb and swollen.

Examples

  • Although hypothermia and heat stroke are commonly thought of as the most life-threatening of temperature injuries, the morbidity of conditions such as immersion foot and frostbite should not be overlooked.

    Academic text (2003)

  • Cold injury can result in frostnip, frostbite, immersion foot, chilblains, and hypothermia.

    Academic text (2003)

  • The soldiers were warned about the risk of immersion foot during their training exercises in wet and cold conditions.

  • Due to prolonged exposure to wet weather, she experienced immersion foot, leading to painful skin irritation.

Synonyms

trench foot
vsimmersion foot
  • Specialized
1 8.4

A foot problem from long cold, wet exposure that causes pain, swelling, and numbness

is the same condition noted as like frostbite but occurring without freezing

Antonyms

warmth
90 1.0

A gentle feeling of heat on your skin

dryness
8 1.0

Lack of water or wetness in something

Surface Forms

immersion foot singular
immersion feet plural

Morphology

immersion + foot

The meaning is compositionally built from 'immersion' (being submerged or exposed to liquid) + 'foot' (the body part), so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it denotes a foot problem caused by prolonged immersion in cold/wet conditions. Although it is a medical term with specific clinical nuance, the causal relation is straightforward and thus readily deducible without prior exposure.

Etymology

Immersion foot comes from a clear picture: a foot left for a long time in cold, wet water, since immersion means being put into liquid. That's why the term now means 'a painful foot injury from long cold, wet exposure'.