digestion
Also found in: Thesaurus, Medical, Legal, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.
Related to digestion: Chemical digestion
di·ges·tion
(dī-jĕs′chən, dĭ-)n.
1.
a. The process by which food is converted into substances that can be absorbed and assimilated by a living organism. In most animals it is accomplished in the digestive tract by the mechanical and enzymatic breakdown of foods into simpler chemical compounds.
b. The ability to digest food.
2. Biochemistry The process of decomposing complex organic substances into simpler substances, as by the action of enzymes or bacteria.
3. Chemistry The process of softening or disintegrating by means of chemical action, heat, or moisture.
4. Assimilation of ideas or information; understanding.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
digestion
(dɪˈdʒɛstʃən; daɪ-)n
1. (Physiology) the act or process in living organisms of breaking down ingested food material into easily absorbed and assimilated substances by the action of enzymes and other agents.
2. (Psychology) mental assimilation, esp of ideas
3. (Microbiology) bacteriol the decomposition of sewage by the action of bacteria
4. (Chemistry) chem the treatment of material with heat, solvents, chemicals, etc, to cause softening or decomposition
[C14: from Old French, from Latin digestiō a dissolving, digestion]
diˈgestional adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
di•ges•tion
(dɪˈdʒɛs tʃən, daɪ-)n.
1. the process in the alimentary canal by which food is broken up physically, as by the action of the teeth, and chemically, as by the action of enzymes, and converted into a substance suitable for absorption and assimilation into the body.
2. the function or power of digesting food.
3. the act of digesting or the state of being digested.
[1350–1400; < Middle French < Latin]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
di·ges·tion
(dī-jĕs′chən)1. The process by which food is broken down into simple chemical compounds that can be absorbed and used as nutrients or eliminated by the body. In most animals, nutrients are obtained from food by the action of digestive enzymes. In humans and other higher vertebrates, digestion takes place mainly in the small intestine.
2. The decomposition of sewage by bacteria.
The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
digestion
1. The breakdown of large food molecules into smaller ones prior to absorption.
2. The chemical and mechanical breakdown of foods into simple substances that can be absorbed by the body.
Dictionary of Unfamiliar Words by Diagram Group Copyright © 2008 by Diagram Visual Information Limited
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Noun | 1. |  digestion - the process of decomposing organic matter (as in sewage) by bacteria or by chemical action or heatchemical action, chemical change, chemical process - (chemistry) any process determined by the atomic and molecular composition and structure of the substances involved |
| 2. | digestion - the organic process by which food is converted into substances that can be absorbed into the body gastric digestion - the process of breaking down proteins by the action of the gastric juice in the stomach biological process, organic process - a process occurring in living organisms | |
| 3. | digestion - learning and coming to understand ideas and information; "his appetite for facts was better than his digestion" learning, acquisition - the cognitive process of acquiring skill or knowledge; "the child's acquisition of language" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
digestion
noun ingestion, absorption, incorporation, assimilation Liquids served with meals interfere with digestion.
Related words
adjective peptic
adjective peptic
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
digestion
nounThe process of absorbing and incorporating, especially mentally:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
هَضْمقُدْرَه على الهَضْم
trávenízažívání
fordøjelse
ruoansulatus
probava
emésztésmegemésztés
meltingmeltingarstarfsemi
消化
소화
trávenie
prebava
matsmältning
การย่อย
sindirimsindirme
sự tiêu hóa
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
digestion
[daɪˈdʒɛstʃən dɪˈdʒɛstʃən daɪˈdʒɛstʃən] n (= process) → digestion f
to aid digestion → aider la digestion
the digestion of sth → la digestion de qch
to aid digestion → aider la digestion
the digestion of sth → la digestion de qch
(= system) → digestion f
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
digestion
n → Verdauung f
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
digest
(daiˈdʒest) verb1. to break up (food) in the stomach etc and turn it into a form which the body can use. The invalid had to have food that was easy to digest.
2. to take in and think over (information etc). It took me some minutes to digest what he had said.
noun summary; brief account. a digest of the week's news.
diˈgestible adjective able to be digested. This food is scarcely digestible.
diˈgestion (-tʃən) noun1. the act of digesting food.
2. the ability of one's body to digest food. poor digestion.
diˈgestive (-tiv) adjective of digestion. the human digestive system.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
digestion
→ هَضْم trávení fordøjelse Verdauung χώνευση digestión ruoansulatus digestion probava digestione 消化 소화 spijsvertering fordøyelse trawienie digestão пищеварение matsmältning การย่อย sindirim sự tiêu hóa 消化Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
di·ges·tion
n. digestión, transformación de líquidos y sólidos en sustancias más simples para ser asimiladas por el organismo;
gastric ___ → ___ gástrica;
intestinal ___ → ___ intestinal, del intestino;
pancreatic ___ → ___ pancreática.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
digestion
n digestión fEnglish-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.