implant

American  

[im-plant, -plahnt, im-plant, -plahnt] / ɪmˈplænt, -ˈplɑnt, ˈɪmˌplænt, -ˌplɑnt /

verb (used with object)

1. to put or fix firmly.

   to implant sound principles in a child's mind.

2. to plant securely.

3. Medicine/Medical. to insert or graft (a tissue, organ, or inert substance) into the body.

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noun

1. Medicine/Medical.

   1. any device or material, especially of an inert substance, used for repairing or replacing part of the body.

   2. medication or radioactive material inserted into tissue for sustained therapy.

   3. implantation.

2. Dentistry.

   1. an artificial tooth that has been inserted permanently into the jaw.

   2. a metal framework attached to the bones of the jaw for supporting artificial teeth.

implant British  

verb

1. to establish firmly; inculcate; instil

   to implant sound moral principles

2. to plant or embed; infix; entrench

3. surgery

   1. to graft (a tissue) into the body

   2. to insert (a radioactive substance, hormone, etc) into the tissues

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noun

1. anything implanted, esp surgically, such as a tissue graft or hormone

implant Scientific  

1. Something that is placed, usually surgically, within a living body, as grafted tissue or a medical device, such as a pacemaker.

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1. To become attached to and embedded in the maternal uterine lining. Used of a fertilized egg.

Other Word Forms

• implanter
  noun
• unimplanted
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of implant

First recorded in 1535–45; im- ¹ + plant

Explanation

When you implant something, you place or embed it solidly: you might implant marbles in the damp concrete of a newly poured sidewalk, for example. There are a couple of different ways to implant something — the first is to physically fix an item deeply, the way you might implant a croquet wicket in the ground. A more figurative way to implant is to settle an idea into someone's mind. You could accidentally implant a fear of highway driving in your younger brother's mind, for example, by telling him stories of traffic accidents. Implant comes from the French word implanter, "to insert."

Example Sentences

Many of the pacemakers come from Implant Recycling, LLC, a Michigan environmental and recycling company that services the crematory and cemetery industries.

From Science Daily • Nov. 20, 2024

Then doctors at NYU Langone Health devised a novel one-two punch: Implant a mechanical pump to keep her heart beating and days later transplant a kidney from a genetically modified pig.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 24, 2024

A Facebook group called Breast Implant Illness and Healing by Nicole, which has more than 165,000 members, convinced Evans to explant.

From Slate • Jun. 9, 2022

“Parents are their children’s first teacher, not the school district,” said Donna L. Sorkin of the Cochlear Implant Alliance, who is deaf and opposes the change.

From Los Angeles Times • May 10, 2022

Could I, a poet, Implant the truth of you, Seize it and sow it As Spring on the world.

From Song-Surf by Rice, Cale Young

Related Words

• embed
• fix
• instill