concentration

American  

[kon-suhn-tray-shuhn] / ˌkɒn sənˈtreɪ ʃən /

noun

• concentrations
  plural

1. the act of concentrating; the state of being concentrated.

2. exclusive attention to one object; close mental application.

3. something concentrated.

   a concentration of stars.

4. Military.

   1. the assembling of military or naval forces in a particular area in preparation for further operations.

   2. a specified intensity and duration of artillery fire placed on a small area.

5. the focusing of a student's academic program on advanced study in a specific subject or field.

6. Chemistry. (in a solution) a measure of the amount of dissolved substance contained per unit of volume.

7. Also called memory. Cards. a game in which all 52 cards are spread out face down on the table and each player in turn exposes two cards at a time and replaces them face down if they do not constitute a pair, the object being to take the most pairs by remembering the location of the cards previously exposed.

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concentration British  

/ ˌkɒnsənˈtreɪʃən /

noun

1. intense mental application; complete attention

2. the act or process of concentrating

3. something that is concentrated

4. c. the strength of a solution, esp the amount of dissolved substance in a given volume of solvent, usually expressed in moles per cubic metre or cubic decimetre (litre)

5. the process of increasing the concentration of a solution

6. military

   1. the act of bringing together military forces

   2. the application of fire from a number of weapons against a target

7. economics the degree to which the output or employment in an industry is accounted for by only a few firms

8. another name (esp US) for Pelmanism

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concentration Scientific  

/ kŏn′sən-trā′shən /

1. The amount of a particular substance in a given amount of another substance, especially a solution or mixture.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• hyperconcentration
  noun
• nonconcentration
  noun
• overconcentration
  noun
• preconcentration
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• concentrations
  plural

Etymology

Origin of concentration

First recorded in 1625–35; concentr(ic) + -ation

Explanation

If you have great powers of concentration, that means you're able to focus all your attention on the matter at hand. Concentration can also refer to something that's clustered together or to the density or strength of a solution. A concentration of people means that there are many of them in one area. Your city may have a concentration of artists living in the warehouses by the river. A high concentration of a substance in a solution means that there's a lot of it relative to the volume: the Great Salt Lake has very few fish because of the high concentration of salt. To say that you have good concentration skills means that you pay attention well.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

concentration concentrations

At an ideal low concentration, lacosamide encouraged cells to produce proteins involved in building cartilage while also suppressing processes that break tissue down.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026

Giant screens display recreations of bunks in Nazi concentration camps and the entrance to the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

However, talent shortages and Malaysia’s concentration in lower-value semiconductor activities could limit the benefits, he reckons.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

Glasgow's concentration of universities, engineers and specialist suppliers, built up over two decades, would be difficult to replicate elsewhere.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

It had taken every ounce of concentration she had to spray a little dirt in a zmeyok’s face that morning.

From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack

On most of our skinflint planet, you will come across gold at concentrations of five parts per billion.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

Compared with people who did not receive vitamin D2, those taking D2 had significantly lower concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026

Participants with higher concentrations of ImP in their blood were much more likely to show biological markers associated with abnormal proteins and impaired neuron function in dementia.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 3, 2026

Supporters of Botswana's hunting policy, however, argue that international criticism often overlooks the costs borne by rural communities living alongside one of the world's biggest concentrations of elephants.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

This suggestion is strongly supported by recent studies by Dr. Wallace and a graduate student, Richard F. Bernard, who found high concentrations of DDT in robins on the Michigan State University campus.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson

Related Words

• absorption
• combination
• consolidation