colic
Also called in·fan·tile col·ic [in-fuhn-tahyl kol-ik], /ˈɪn fənˌtaɪl ˈkɒl ɪk/, infant colic .Pathology. a common, temporary condition in which a baby who is otherwise healthy cries repeatedly, excessively, and inconsolably, without apparent cause: To help create more awareness about colic, the doctors are writing a book for parents with fussy babies.
Pathology, Veterinary Pathology. paroxysmal pain in the abdomen or bowels: If a gallstone blocks one of the bile ducts, it can cause sudden, severe abdominal pain, known as biliary colic.
relating to or affecting the colon or the bowels: Colorectal cancer surgeons must have a good understanding of how colic arteries can differ among people.
Origin of colic
1Other words from colic
- col·ick·y, adjective
Words Nearby colic
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use colic in a sentence
I went back to work sooner than I had with my son and we muddled through the colic, the eczema, two sets of diapers.
And in my first memory, I am a toddler kneading that taut skin, easing my colic into sleep.
But college is not like some sort of all-purpose herbal supplement that cures bunions and also colic; it teaches specific skills.
Sorry, Kids, No High School Diplomas Need Apply | Megan McArdle | February 20, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTOne morning, after taking my coffee, I was seized with violent sickness, attended with colic.
My Ten Years' Imprisonment | Silvio PellicoI don't know what was the matter with it, but I think it had the colic, for it lay as quiet as a mouse; and then it died.
St. Nicholas, Vol. 5, No. 5, March, 1878 | Various
He had come within at least an appreciable distance of selling his soul for a colic cure.
The Boy Grew Older | Heywood BrounHe died of colic in the year 1430, at the age of forty-seven.
Lives of the Most Eminent Painters Sculptors and Architects | Giorgio VasariBut I do know that I was fortunate in not being devoured during the several hours I was knotted up on the ground with the colic.
Before Adam | Jack London
British Dictionary definitions for colic
/ (ˈkɒlɪk) /
a condition characterized by acute spasmodic abdominal pain, esp that caused by inflammation, distention, etc, of the gastrointestinal tract
Origin of colic
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for colic
[ kŏl′ĭk ]
Severe abdominal pain, often caused by spasm, obstruction, or distention of any of the hollow viscera, such as the intestines.
A condition seen in infants less than three months old, marked by periods of inconsolable crying lasting for hours at a time for at least three weeks. The cause is unknown.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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