absorption
noun
Simple meaning
The social process of absorbing one cultural group into harmony with another.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
uhbzawrpshuhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
əbˈzɔɹpʃən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
The social process of absorbing one cultural group into harmony with another
The process of absorbing nutrients into the body after digestion
The act or process of absorbing or of being absorbed as
physiology
In living organisms, the process by which the materials of growth and nutrition are absorbed and conveyed to the tissues and organs; taking in by various means, such as by osmosis.
Assimilation; incorporation.
Mental assimilation.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The social process of absorbing one cultural group into harmony with another
This meaning of 'absorption' describes how one culture integrates into another, often implying a loss of the original culture's distinctness. It's similar to 'assimilation' but can feel more passive or even forced, like a sponge soaking something up.
- Emotional tone
- Slightly positive
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Positive and appreciative
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where you'll really hear it
Sociology Textbook
“Cultural absorption of minority groups can lead to complex social issues.”
News Analysis
“The rapid absorption of immigrants into the labor force was impressive.”
Historical Essay
“Early policies aimed at the absorption of indigenous populations into colonial society.”
Where it naturally appears
- Music/performance
- Arts writing
Nearby words
- soaking up , a specialist term, precise but narrower
- concentration , a specialist term, precise but narrower
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use absorption
- “The absorption of photons by atoms or molecules.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A dark band in the spectrum of white light that has been transmitted through a substance that exhibits absorption at selective wavelengths.
A measure of the rate of decrease in the intensity of electromagnetic radiation (as light) as it passes through a given substance.
The property of a body that determines the fraction of the incident radiation or sound flux absorbed or absorbable by the body.
An indicator used in reactions that involve precipitation.
The spectrum of electromagnetic radiation that has passed through a medium that absorbed radiation of certain wavelengths.
A unit for measuring absorption.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: social process of absorbing one cultural group into harmony with another
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.