concentration

American  

[kon-suhn-trey-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

While ETFs and passive investing have historically been a good way to introduce diversification, market concentration around megacap tech names can result in portfolios having more exposure to AI infrastructure names than investors realize.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026

The researchers found that this rapid ascent was associated with a much higher concentration of carbon dioxide.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026

Another benefit of moving to Nevada is the high concentration of transplants.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026

Some of the rallies were stunning, but he was playing carelessly at times, and sometimes seemed disengaged as his concentration fluctuated.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

If they were afraid, neither said so: it required both their full concentration to keep the sail steady and steer.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

Smoke resulting from incomplete burning contains dense, lethal concentrations of carbon monoxide.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

California has the highest concentration of Salvadoran TPS holders in the nation, with smaller concentrations in Texas, Maryland and New York, according to the immigrant advocacy organization FWD.us.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

The study does not establish that PCE directly causes liver fibrosis, but the strong association and the increase in risk seen with higher blood concentrations suggest that environmental chemicals deserve closer scrutiny in liver research.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 7, 2026

Even under healthy conditions, glucose concentrations inside the gut can become high enough after eating to trigger significant sorbitol production in the intestine.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026

In Michigan, eggs taken from the oviducts of robins dead of DDT poisoning showed concentrations up to 200 parts per million.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson

Related Words

• absorption
• combination
• consolidation