dystrophy
Americannoun
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Medicine/Medical. faulty or inadequate nutrition or development.
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Pathology. any of a number of disorders characterized by weakening, degeneration, or abnormal development of muscle.
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Ecology. the state of being dystrophic.
noun
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any of various bodily disorders, characterized by wasting of tissues See also muscular dystrophy
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ecology a condition of lake water when it is too acidic and poor in oxygen to support life, resulting from excessive humus content
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of dystrophy
From the New Latin word dystrophia, dating back to 1885–90. See dys-, -trophy
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Sarcopenia is a form of muscular dystrophy associated with aging and is a popular condition for biotech companies that harbor greater goals of reversing or slowing aging to target.
From Slate • Mar. 30, 2026
Andy was born with retinal dystrophy, an inherited condition causing progressive vision loss, which eventually leads to tunnel vision and potentially blindness.
From BBC • Jan. 30, 2026
Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a rare gene disorder that causes muscles in the body to break down over time, primarily affecting young boys.
From Barron's • Jan. 26, 2026
Dyne, also of Waltham, is developing drugs to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy and other neuromuscular disorders.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 12, 2026
There were tiny babies with club feet, children who had paralyzed limbs from polio, adolescents dying from muscular dystrophy.
From "My Life with the Chimpanzees" by Jane Goodall
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
