excretion

¹ American  

[ik-skree-shuhn] / ɪkˈskri ʃən /

noun

1. the act of excreting.

2. the substance excreted, as urine or sweat, or certain plant products.

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excretion ² American  

[ik-skree-shuhn] / ɪkˈskri ʃən /

noun

1. the state of being excrescent.

2. an excrescence.

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excretion Scientific  

/ ĭk-skrē′shən /

1. The elimination by an organism of waste products that result from metabolic processes. In plants, waste is minimal and is eliminated primarily by diffusion to the outside environment. Animals have specific organs of excretion. In vertebrates, the kidney filters blood, conserving water and producing urea and other waste products in the form of urine. The urine is then passed through the ureters to the bladder and discharged through the urethra. The skin and lungs, which eliminate carbon dioxide, are also excretory organs.

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Etymology

Origin of excretion¹

1595–1605; < Late Latin excrētiōn- (stem of excrētiō ) that which is sifted out. See excrete, -ion

Origin of excretion²

1605–15; < Late Latin excrētiōn- (stem of excrētiō ), equivalent to Latin excrēt ( us ) (past participle of excrēscere; see ex- ¹, crescent) + iōn- -ion

Explanation

Excretion is the physical process of eliminating waste, especially in a living organism. If you think about it, excretion keeps plumbers in business. In a human, there are three organs that mostly take care of excretion, or ridding the body of substances it doesn't need: lungs, kidneys, and skin. All living things have some form of excretion — in people, some waste is excreted in the form of urine, while the excretion of plants results in carbon dioxide and water being released. Excretion comes from the French excrétion, with its Latin root excernere, "to discharge."

Example Sentences

The researchers published this challenge to the paradigm as a brief, "Unifying Fluidic Excretion Across Life from Cicadas to Elephants," in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences the week of March 11.

From Science Daily • Mar. 11, 2024

Excretion occurs through a pore called the nephridiopore.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Excretion of sodium is accomplished primarily by the kidneys.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

Students are taught that the vital attributes of life can be summed up in the mnemonic "Mrs Gren": Movement, Respiration, Sensitivity, Growth-and-repair, Reproduction, Excretion and Nutrition.

From The Guardian • Mar. 27, 2013

They were here, said I. The Volumes with your Data, your Diet & Excretion &c.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson