ossified

[os-uh-fahyd]

See more synonyms for ossified on Thesaurus.com

adjective

hardened like or into bone.
Slang. drunk.

Origin of ossified

First recorded in 1790–1800; ossify + -ed²

Related formsun·os·si·fied, adjective

ossify

[os-uh-fahy]

verb (used with object), os·si·fied, os·si·fy·ing.

to convert into or cause to harden like bone.

verb (used without object), os·si·fied, os·si·fy·ing.

to become bone or harden like bone.
to become rigid or inflexible in habits, attitudes, opinions, etc.: a young man who began to ossify right after college.

Origin of ossify

1705–15; < Latin ossi- (stem of os) bone + -fy

Related formsos·si·fi·er, nounun·os·si·fy·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for ossified

Contemporary Examples

Who would you think more likely to reform an ossified economic system?
Kim Jong Un & The Myth of the Reformer Dictator
Michael Moynihan
December 24, 2013
Although it makes no sense, this simplistic line has been repeated ad nauseam until it has ossified into accepted fact.
Rx for Obamacare: Take a Chill Pill
Joe McLean
December 4, 2013
She only wrote two novels, but they establish her as the chronicler of an ossified generation unable to move forward in life.
Renata Adler, Poet of a Chaotic Generation
Jen Vafidis
March 21, 2013

Historical Examples

The joints are less supple; the arteries are more or less "ossified."
Over the Teacups
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.
The vertebræ were not ossified, for no trace of them has been found.
The Elements of Geology
William Harmon Norton
It is not necessary to be a contortionist, nor will it answer to be an ossified freak.
Riding and Driving
Edward L. Anderson
The notochord is restricted and replaced by ossified vertebræ.
A Guide to the Study of Fishes, Volume 1 (of 2)
David Starr Jordan
The mandible has a distinct splenial, and the articular is ossified.
The Vertebrate Skeleton
Sidney H. Reynolds

British Dictionary definitions for ossified

ossified

adjective

converted into bone
having become set and inflexible
Irish slang intoxicated; drunk

ossify

verb -fies, -fying or -fied

to convert or be converted into bone
(intr) (of habits, attitudes, etc) to become inflexible

Derived Formsossifier, noun

Word Origin

C18: from French ossifier, from Latin os bone + facere to make

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

Word Origin and History for ossified

ossify

v.

1713, "to turn into bone," a back-formation from ossification, or else modeled on French ossifier (18c.) and formed from Latin os (genitive ossis) "bone" (see osseous) + -fy. Figurative sense is from 1858. Related: Ossified; ossifying.

ossified in Medicine

ossify

(ŏs′ə-fī′)

To change into bone.

ossified

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}ossified

ossify

Origin of ossify

Examples from the Web for ossified

Contemporary Examples

Who would you think more likely to reform an ossified economic system?

Although it makes no sense, this simplistic line has been repeated ad nauseam until it has ossified into accepted fact.

She only wrote two novels, but they establish her as the chronicler of an ossified generation unable to move forward in life.

Historical Examples

The joints are less supple; the arteries are more or less "ossified."

The vertebræ were not ossified, for no trace of them has been found.

It is not necessary to be a contortionist, nor will it answer to be an ossified freak.

The notochord is restricted and replaced by ossified vertebræ.

The mandible has a distinct splenial, and the articular is ossified.

ossified

ossify

Word Origin

Word Origin and History for ossified

ossify

v.

ossify

Origin of ossified