atony
Americannoun
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Pathology. lack of tone or energy; muscular weakness, especially in a contractile organ.
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Phonetics. lack of stress accent.
noun
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pathol lack of normal tone or tension, as in muscles; abnormal relaxation of a muscle
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phonetics lack of stress or accent on a syllable or word
Etymology
Origin of atony
1685–95; < Late Latin atonia < Greek, derivative of átonos unaccented, languid, literally, toneless. See a- 6, tone
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Secretary of State Atony Blinken also condemned the attack.
From Washington Times • Oct. 7, 2023
Current Secretary of State Atony Blinken echoed the assertion in 2022, saying the genocide was “ongoing.”
From Washington Times • Apr. 20, 2023
Atony, at′on-i, n. want of tone or energy: debility: relaxation.—adj.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various
"Atony, paralysis, fatty degeneration of the gut, are bad enough," say these objectors, "without having an enema increase their uselessness."
From Intestinal Ills Chronic Constipation, Indigestion, Autogenetic Poisons, Diarrhea, Piles, Etc. Also Auto-Infection, Auto-Intoxication, Anemia, Emaciation, Etc. Due to Proctitis and Colitis by Jamison, Alcinous B. (Alcinous Burton)
Atony, or want of tone of the stomach, gradually supervenes, and incurable disorder of health results.
From Grappling with the Monster The Curse and the Cure of Strong Drink by Arthur, T. S. (Timothy Shay)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
