ossify

[ os-uh-fahy ]
See synonyms for ossify on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object),os·si·fied, os·si·fy·ing.
  1. to convert into or cause to harden like bone.

verb (used without object),os·si·fied, os·si·fy·ing.
  1. to become bone or harden like bone.

  2. to become rigid or inflexible in habits, attitudes, opinions, etc.: a young man who began to ossify right after college.

Origin of ossify

1
1705–15; <Latin ossi- (stem of os) bone + -fy

Other words from ossify

  • os·si·fi·er, noun
  • un·os·si·fy·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for ossify

ossify

/ (ˈɒsɪˌfaɪ) /


verb-fies, -fying or -fied
  1. to convert or be converted into bone

  2. (intr) (of habits, attitudes, etc) to become inflexible

Origin of ossify

1
C18: from French ossifier, from Latin os bone + facere to make

Derived forms of ossify

  • ossifier, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012