dystrophy

[dis-truh-fee]

noun

Medicine/Medical. faulty or inadequate nutrition or development.

Pathology. any of a number of disorders characterized by weakening, degeneration, or abnormal development of muscle.

Ecology. the state of being dystrophic.

Also dys·tro·phi·a

[dih-stroh-fee-uh] /dɪˈstroʊ fi ə/.

Origin of dystrophy

From the New Latin word dystrophia, dating back to 1885–90. See dys-, -trophy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for dystrophia

dystrophy

dystrophia (dɪˈstrəʊfɪə)

noun

any of various bodily disorders, characterized by wasting of tissuesSee also muscular dystrophy

ecology a condition of lake water when it is too acidic and poor in oxygen to support life, resulting from excessive humus content

Derived Formsdystrophic (dɪsˈtrɒfɪk), adjective

Word Origin for dystrophy

C19: New Latin dystrophia, from dys- + Greek trophē food

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 dystrophia

dystrophy

also distrophy, "defective nutrition," 1858, from Modern Latin dystrophia, distrophia, from Greek dys- "hard, bad, ill" (see dys-) + trophe "nourishment" (see -trophy). Related: Dystrophic.

dystrophia in Medicine

dystrophy

[dĭs′trə-fē]

n.

A degenerative disorder caused by inadequate or defective nutrition.

Any of several disorders, especially muscular dystrophy, in which the muscles weaken and atrophy.

Related formsdys•troph′ic (dĭ-strŏf′ĭk, -strō′fĭk) adj.