saturation

American  

[sach-uh-rey-shuhn] / ˌsætʃ əˈreɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of saturating.

2. the state of being saturated. saturated.

3. Meteorology. a condition in the atmosphere corresponding to 100 percent relative humidity.

4. the degree of chroma or purity of a color; the degree of freedom from admixture with white.

5. Magnetism. the state of maximum magnetization of a ferromagnetic material.

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saturation British  

/ ˌsætʃəˈreɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of saturating or the state of being saturated

2. chem the state of a chemical compound, solution, or vapour when it is saturated

3. meteorol the state of the atmosphere when it can hold no more water vapour at its particular temperature and pressure, the relative humidity then being 100 per cent

4. the attribute of a colour that enables an observer to judge its proportion of pure chromatic colour See also colour

5. physics the state of a ferromagnetic material in which it is fully magnetized. The magnetic domains are then all fully aligned

6. electronics the state of a valve or semiconductor device that is carrying the maximum current of which it is capable and is therefore unresponsive to further increases of input signal

7. the level beyond which demand for a product or service is not expected to increase

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1. denoting the maximum possible intensity of coverage of an area

   saturation bombing

   a saturation release of a film

saturation Scientific  

/ săch′ə-rā′shən /

1. The state of a physical system, such as a solution, containing as much of another substance, such as a solute, as is possible at a given temperature or pressure.

2. The vividness of a color's hue. Saturation measures the degree to which a color differs from a gray of the same darkness or lightness.

3. Compare hue value

4. The state of being a saturated organic compound.

5. See more at saturated

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Other Word Forms

• desaturation noun
• nonsaturation noun
• oversaturation noun
• subsaturation noun

Etymology

Origin of saturation

1545–55; < Late Latin saturātiōn- (stem of saturātiō ) a filling, equivalent to saturāt ( us ) ( saturate ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

“The flooding threat will be exacerbated ... Friday due to the super saturation of all of the area. Any rainfall that occurs will immediately turn to runoff,” the weather service office in Oxnard said.

From Los Angeles Times

The goal with his book was to create "something truly different in this era of crazy media saturation".

From BBC

Liquids with greater initial gas saturation needed even less shear to create more bubbles.

From Science Daily

The expansion will be new ground for the company, which will eventually reach a saturation point in U.S. subscribers.

From Los Angeles Times

During these sessions, the researchers monitored heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen uptake efficiency, blood oxygen saturation, and how much effort participants used to breathe.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• congestion
• overload