hypertonic
Americanadjective
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Physiology. of or relating to hypertonia.
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Physical Chemistry. noting a solution of higher osmotic pressure than another solution with which it is compared (opposed to hypotonic).
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of hypertonic
First recorded in 1850–55; hyperton(ia) + -ic
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Vocabulary lists containing hypertonic
Cell Biology - High School
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Chemistry - High School
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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.
Andrew has hypertonic cerebral palsy, which means he suffers from tightening muscles and regular spasms.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2024
A cell placed in a solution with higher salt concentration, on the other hand, tends to make the membrane shrivel up due to loss of water into the hypertonic or “high salt” environment.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
Would an organism that is constantly in a hypertonic environment likely be an osmoregulator or an osmoconformer?
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
What is most likely to happen if Paramecia are moved from a hypertonic solution to solutions of decreasing osmolarity?
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
If in the saline solution we place a coloured isotonic drop between two coloured hypertonic drops, all the figures and movements of karyokinesis appear successively in their due order.
From The Mechanism of Life by Leduc, Stéphane
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.
