fibrillation

[ fahy-bruh-ley-shuhn, or, especially for 2, fib-ruh- ]

/ ˌfaɪ brəˈleɪ ʃən, or, especially for 2, ˌfɪb rə- /

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noun

the formation of fibrils.

Pathology. uncontrolled twitching or quivering of muscular fibrils.

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Origin of fibrillation

First recorded in 1830–40; fibrillate + -ion

Words nearby fibrillation

fibrescope, fibriform, fibril, fibrilla, fibrillate, fibrillation, fibrilliform, fibrin, fibrino-, fibrinogen, fibrinogenic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use fibrillation in a sentence

The cause was atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat, said her daughter Lydia Sullivan.
Ruth Christ Sullivan, pioneering advocate for people with autism, dies at 97|Harrison Smith|September 22, 2021|Washington Post
The rhythm on the monitor was ventricular fibrillation, random electrical oscillations.
Real Life Lazarus: When Patients Rise From the Dead|Sandeep Jauhar|August 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Cue atrial fibrillation on my part; I'd already arranged to break my lease, and also, I'd gotten rather fond of him.
New York City, NIMBY Paradise|Megan McArdle|March 27, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The myokymia of Kny and Schultze is characterised by fibrillation, pain, hyperidrosis, and changes in electrical excitability.
Tics and Their Treatment|Henry Meigne

This fibrillation of mucus is regarded as the result of a coagulation of its mucin, previously held in solution by an alkali.
A System of Practical Medicine by American Authors, Vol. I|Various
Even in periods of repose there is a certain amount of fibrillation on that side.
Tics and Their Treatment|Henry Meigne
If that is true, then auricular fibrillation may last for many years.
Arteriosclerosis and Hypertension:|Louis Marshall Warfield
The common type of lesion is a dry arthritis with fibrillation and eburnation of the articular surfaces.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition.|Alexander Miles

British Dictionary definitions for fibrillation

fibrillation

/ (ˌfaɪbrɪˈleɪʃən, ˌfɪb-) /

noun

a local and uncontrollable twitching of muscle fibres, esp of the heart, not affecting the entire muscle. Atrial fibrillation results in rapid and irregular heart and pulse rate. In ventricular fibrillation, the heart stops beating

irregular twitchings of the muscular wall of the heart, often interfering with the normal rhythmic contractions

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

Scientific definitions for fibrillation

fibrillation

[ fĭb′rə-lā′shən ]

A rapid twitching of muscle fibers, as of the heart, that is caused by the abnormal discharge of electrical nerve impulses. Ventricular fibrillation is life-threatening.