calcification

American  

[kal-suh-fi-key-shuhn] / ˌkæl sə fɪˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. a changing into lime.

2. Physiology. the deposition of lime or insoluble salts of calcium and magnesium, as in a tissue.

3. Anatomy, Geology. a calcified formation.

4. a soil process in which the surface soil is supplied with calcium in such a way that the soil colloids are always close to saturation.

5. a hardening or solidifying; rigidity.

   As the conflict developed, there was an increasing calcification of attitudes on both sides.

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calcification Scientific  

/ kăl′sə-fĭ-kā′shən /

1. Medicine

   1. The accumulation of calcium or calcium salts in a body tissue. Calcification normally occurs in the formation of bone, but can be deposited abnormally, as in the lungs.

   2. A structure that has undergone calcification.

2. Geology

   1. The replacement of organic material, especially original hard material such as bone, with calcium carbonate during the process of fossilization.

   2. The accumulation of calcium in certain soils, especially soils of cool temperate regions where leaching takes place very slowly.

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Etymology

Origin of calcification

First recorded in 1840–50; calcific + -ation

Example Sentences

A scan with significant calcification helps doctors and patients make a decision about whether they need to take a statin or other cholesterol-lowering medication.

From The Wall Street Journal

“No significant masses, calcifications or other findings are seen in either breast.”

From Los Angeles Times

And even for executive physicals - which cater to busy professionals and include a host of additional tests - he says it is still uncommon for that imaging to come back "perfectly normal" with no coronary calcification.

From BBC

Nawi said Strachan’s projects resist the “calcification of history,” which she describes as the process in which a dominant group reinforces narratives that glorify themselves while ignoring or actively erasing the contributions of others.

From Los Angeles Times

She stated the actual cause of death was narrowing and "calcification of his coronary arteries due to old age".

From BBC