malassimilation

American

[mal-uh-sim-uh-ley-shuhn] / ˌmæl əˌsɪm əˈleɪ ʃən /

noun

Pathology.

imperfect incorporation of nutrients into body tissue.

malassimilation British

/ ˌmæləˌsɪmɪˈleɪʃən /

noun

pathol defective assimilation of nutrients

"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

Etymology

Origin of malassimilation

First recorded in 1860–65; mal- + assimilation

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.

Malassimilation, mal-a-sim-i-lā′shun, n. imperfect assimilation or nutrition.

From Project Gutenberg

During his shanty-life Thoreau was imperfectly nourished, and for the victim of malassimilation, tuberculosis hunts and needs no spyglass.

From Project Gutenberg

It will take him, perhaps, months or years to die a gradual, miserable death through malassimilation and malnutrition, which usually end in some form of wasting disease, such as pernicious anemia or tuberculosis.

From Project Gutenberg

If he does not actually die from the effects of the wrongly treated typhoid fever, he will be troubled all his life with intestinal indigestion, constipation, malassimilation and the accompanying nervous disorders.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023