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occlusion

[ uh-kloo-zhuhn ]
/ əˈklu ʒən /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR occlusion

noun

the act of closing, blocking, or shutting something, or the state of being closed or blocked: Corrosion may cause both leakage and occlusion of the water supply pipes.
Dentistry. the fitting together of the teeth of the lower jaw with the corresponding teeth of the upper jaw when the jaws are closed.
Pathology. closure or blockage of a blood vessel: coronary occlusion.
Phonetics. momentary complete closure at some area in the vocal tract, causing stoppage of the flow of air and accumulation of pressure: many consonants in English, as /b/ and /k/, are articulated this way.
Meteorology.
  1. an occluded front.
  2. the formation of an occuded front.
Graphic Arts. an obstructed view, or occultation, of an object in three-dimensional space when line of sight is blocked by an intervening object: Augmented reality is only believable if rendered models respect occlusion and disappear behind real-world objects.

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Origin of occlusion

First recorded in 1635–45; from Latin occlūs(us) (past participle of occlūdere “to close up, shut”) + -ion;see occlude

OTHER WORDS FROM occlusion

oc·clu·sal [uh-kloo-suhl, -zuhl], /əˈklu səl, -zəl/, adjectivenon·oc·clu·sion, nounpre·oc·clu·sion, noun

Words nearby occlusion

occlusal analysis, occlusal equilibration, occlusal force, occlusal imbalance, occlusal position, occlusion, occlusion of pupil, occlusive, occlusive dressing, occlusive ileus, occlusive meningitis
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to occlusion

closure, barrier, blockage, stoppage, barricade, block, blocking

Example sentences from the Web for occlusion

British Dictionary definitions for occlusion

occlusion
/ (əˈkluːʒən) /

noun

the act or process of occluding or the state of being occluded
meteorol another term for occluded front
dentistry the normal position of the teeth when the jaws are closed
phonetics the complete closure of the vocal tract at some point, as in the closure prior to the articulation of a plosive

Derived forms of occlusion

occlusal (əˈkluːsəl), adjective
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

Medical definitions for occlusion

occlusion
[ ə-klōō′zhən ]

n.

The act of occluding or the state of being occluded.
An obstruction or closure of a body passage.
Any contact between the cutting or chewing surfaces of opposing teeth.
The alignment of the teeth of the upper and lower jaws when brought together.
The absorption of a gas or other substance, as by a metal.
The inclusion of one substance within another.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Scientific definitions for occlusion

occlusion
[ ə-klōō′zhən ]

An obstruction in a passageway, especially of the body.
The alignment of the upper and lower sets of teeth with each other.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.