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maladaptation

American  
[mal-ad-uhp-tey-shuhn] / ˌmæl æd əpˈteɪ ʃən /

noun

  1. incomplete, inadequate, or faulty adaptation.


Etymology

Origin of maladaptation

First recorded in 1875–80; mal- + adaptation

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.

See Examples For:

The development of PT maladaptation markers required analysis of plasma proteome in patients having cardiac surgery and in marathon runners who may have suffered exercise-related AKI.

From Science Daily Dec. 14, 2023

CrossFit, then, “is one component of how to change the behaviors of adults, in an attempt to reverse our maladaptation to our current circumstances.”

From Slate Feb. 11, 2023

“Our level of intelligence could be a maladaptation, a wrong turn, an aberration.”

From New York Times Nov. 14, 2017

Lastly, maladaptation is where the human response actively undermines the capacity of society to cope with climate change or contributes to the problem and increases the vulnerability to it.

From Scientific American Apr. 4, 2013

That is, the response to "sharp" is a nascent or incipient form of a response which at the time of its first occurrence was the expression of a maladaptation.

From Creative Intelligence Essays in the Pragmatic Attitude by Bode, Boyd H.

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