DIGESTION

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does digestion mean? 

• DIGESTION (noun)
  The noun DIGESTION has 3 senses:

1. the process of decomposing organic matter (as in sewage) by bacteria or by chemical action or heat

2. the organic process by which food is converted into substances that can be absorbed into the body

3. learning and coming to understand ideas and information

  Familiarity information: DIGESTION used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• DIGESTION (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The process of decomposing organic matter (as in sewage) by bacteria or by chemical action or heat

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural processes

Hypernyms ("digestion" is a kind of...):

chemical action; chemical change; chemical process ((chemistry) any process determined by the atomic and molecular composition and structure of the substances involved)

Derivation:

digest (soften or disintegrate by means of chemical action, heat, or moisture)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The organic process by which food is converted into substances that can be absorbed into the body

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural processes

Hypernyms ("digestion" is a kind of...):

biological process; organic process (a process occurring in living organisms)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "digestion"):

gastric digestion (the process of breaking down proteins by the action of the gastric juice in the stomach)

Derivation:

digest (convert food into absorbable substances)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Learning and coming to understand ideas and information

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Context example:

his appetite for facts was better than his digestion

Hypernyms ("digestion" is a kind of...):

acquisition; learning (the cognitive process of acquiring skill or knowledge)

Derivation:

digest (arrange and integrate in the mind)

 Context examples 

They produce juices to help digestion.

(Digestive Diseases, NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)

An agent that favors or assists the process of digestion.

(Digestant, NCI Thesaurus)

An uncomfortable, often painful feeling in the stomach, resulting from impaired digestion.

(Dyspepsia, NCI Thesaurus)

A disorder characterized by an uncomfortable, often painful feeling in the stomach, resulting from impaired digestion.

(Dyspepsia, NCI Thesaurus/CTCAE)

It is utilized as a holding chamber during digestion for un-digested and partially digested food.

(Forestomach, NCI Thesaurus)

Inhalation, digestion, and dermal contact are the primary routes of potential exposure, which was linked to increased incidence of hepatocellular carcinomas in animals.

(Diethylhexylphthalate, NCI Thesaurus)

RNA digestion in vitro can release dbpB in its active form, suggesting that the protease responsible for dbpB may be closely associated in a complex.

(DBPB Transcriptional Activation Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

A saccular diverticulum of the esophagus in bird species that is used for food storage prior to digestion.

(Crop, NCI Thesaurus)

A cyclic cytidine.Cifostodine is formed during digestion of ribonucleic acid by ribonuclease.

(Cifostodine, NCI Thesaurus)

The tube-like glands in the mucosal lining of the small and large intestines which secrete various enzymes that aid in digestion.

(Crypt of Lieberkuhn, NCI Thesaurus)