digestion

[dih-jes-chuhn, dahy-]

noun

1. the process in the alimentary canal by which food is broken up physically, as by the action of the teeth, and chemically, as by the action of enzymes, and converted into a substance suitable for absorption and assimilation into the body.

2. the function or power of digesting food.

   My digestion is bad.

3. the act of digesting or the state of being digested.

digestion

/ dɪˈdʒɛstʃən, daɪ- /

noun

1. the act or process in living organisms of breaking down ingested food material into easily absorbed and assimilated substances by the action of enzymes and other agents

2. mental assimilation, esp of ideas

3. bacteriol the decomposition of sewage by the action of bacteria

4. chem the treatment of material with heat, solvents, chemicals, etc, to cause softening or decomposition

digestion

1. The process by which food is broken down into simple chemical compounds that can be absorbed and used as nutrients or eliminated by the body. In most animals, nutrients are obtained from food by the action of digestive enzymes. In humans and other higher vertebrates, digestion takes place mainly in the small intestine. In protists and some invertebrates, digestion occurs by phagocytosis.

2. The decomposition of organic material, such as sewage, by bacteria.

digestion

1. The breaking down of food, which is made up of complex organic molecules (see also organic molecule), into smaller molecules that the body can absorb and use for maintenance and growth.

Other Word Forms

• digestional adjective
• nondigestion noun
• redigestion noun
• self-digestion noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of digestion¹

1350–1400; Middle English digestioun < Anglo-French, Middle French < Latin dīgestiōn- (stem of dīgestiō ), equivalent to dīgest ( us ) ( digest ) + -iōn- -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of digestion¹

C14: from Old French, from Latin digestiō a dissolving, digestion

Example Sentences

“Then again, Grandpap’s life has been dull and contented as a frog’s on a rock. ‘Good lives make bad plays,’ as they say, but all that peace and quiet surely helps the digestion.

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It’s normal to see a “digestion period” after such a period of high returns of the lows of January 2023, he said.

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These medications work by imitating a natural hormone that slows digestion and helps individuals feel full for longer.

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“It makes sense just to have some digestion of a really strong day yesterday,” said Matt Stucky, chief portfolio manager of equities at Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management.

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During digestion, a body only retains the elements that are useful to it.

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Related Words

• absorption 
• metabolism