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atrophy

[a-truh-fee]
noun
  1. Also a·tro·phi·a [uh-troh-fee-uh] /əˈtroʊ fi ə/. Pathology. a wasting away of the body or of an organ or part, as from defective nutrition or nerve damage.
  2. degeneration, decline, or decrease, as from disuse: He argued that there was a progressive atrophy of freedom and independence of thought.
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verb (used with or without object), at·ro·phied, at·ro·phy·ing.
  1. to affect with or undergo atrophy.
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Origin of atrophy

1590–1600; earlier atrophie (< Middle French) < Late Latin atrophia < Greek, equivalent to átroph(os) not fed (see a-6, tropho-) + -ia -ia
Related formsa·troph·ic [uh-trof-ik, uh-troh-fik] /əˈtrɒf ɪk, əˈtroʊ fɪk/, adjectivenon·a·troph·ic, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

degenerationdeclinedownfalldowngradedeteriorationdiminutiondegeneracy

Examples from the Web for atrophies

Historical Examples

  • Whichever faculty you use, the other atrophies, and partly deserts you.

    This Simian World

    Clarence Day

  • It becomes in fact the oviduct in the female and atrophies in the male.

  • Even when absorbed into the tissues in minute doses it corrodes the brain and atrophies the intellect.

  • Many of these atrophies from disuse are cured by mental influence of one kind or another.

    Psychotherapy

    James J. Walsh

  • If it yields to their narcotic charms, the best brain grows rusty and atrophies in the long run.

    Battle Studies

    Charles-Jean-Jacques-Joseph Ardant du Picq

British Dictionary definitions for atrophies

atrophy

noun plural -phies
  1. a wasting away of an organ or part, or a failure to grow to normal size as the result of disease, faulty nutrition, etc
  2. any degeneration or diminution, esp through lack of use
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verb -phies, -phying or -phied
  1. to waste away or cause to waste away
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Derived Formsatrophic (əˈtrɒfɪk), adjective

Word Origin

C17: from Late Latin atrophia, from Greek, from atrophos ill-fed, from a- 1 + -trophos from trephein to feed
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

Word Origin and History for atrophies

atrophy

n.

"a wasting away through lack of nourishment," 1620s (atrophied is from 1590s), from French atrophie, from Late Latin atrophia, from Greek atrophia "a wasting away," noun of state from atrophos "ill-fed, un-nourished," from a- "not" + trophe "nourishment," from trephein "to fatten" (see -trophy).

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atrophy

v.

1822 (implied in atrophied), from atrophy (n.). Related: Atrophying.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
atrophies in Medicine

atrophy

(ăt′rə-fē)
n.
  1. A wasting or decrease in the size of an organ or tissue, as from death and reabsorption of cells, diminished cellular proliferation, pressure, ischemia, malnutrition, decreased function, or hormonal changes.atrophia
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v.
  1. To undergo atrophy.
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Related formsa•troph′ic (ā-trŏf′ĭk) adj.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
atrophies in Science

atrophy

[ăt′rə-fē]
  1. A wasting or decrease in the size of an organ or tissue, as from death and reabsorption of cells, diminished proliferation of cells, pressure, lack of oxygen, malnutrition, decreased function, or hormonal changes.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
atrophies in Culture

atrophy

[(at-ruh-fee)]

The wasting away or decrease in size of an organ or tissue in the body. When a body part is affected by paralysis, the muscles may atrophy through lack of use.

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Note

The term is also used in a more general way to refer to a wasting process: “Since he stopped playing, his piano skills have atrophied.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.