Dictionary Definition
absorb
Verb
1 become imbued; "The liquids, light, and gases
absorb"
2 take up mentally; "he absorbed the knowledge or
beliefs of his tribe" [syn: assimilate, ingest, take in]
3 take up, as of debts or payments; "absorb the
costs for something" [syn: take
over]
4 take in, also metaphorically; "The sponge
absorbs water well"; "She drew strength from the minister's words"
[syn: suck, imbibe, soak up, sop up, suck up, draw, take in, take up]
5 cause to become one with; "The sales tax is
absorbed into the state income tax"
7 engross (oneself) fully; "He immersed himself
into his studies" [syn: steep, immerse, engulf, plunge, engross, soak up]
8 assimilate or take in; "The immigrants were
quickly absorbed into society"
9 engage or engross wholly; "Her interest in
butterflies absorbs her completely" [syn: engross, engage, occupy]
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Etymology
15th Century, via , from Latin absorbere, which is formed from prefix ab-, + sorbere, akin to Greek; compare French absorber.- Rhymes: -ɔː(r)b
Verb
- To include so that
it no longer has separate existence; to swallow up; to
engulf; to overwhelm; to cause to
disappear as if by
swallowing up; to
use up; to
incorporate; to
assimilate.
- Dark oblivion soon absorbs them all. - Cowper
- The large cities absorb the wealth and fashion. - W. Irving
- To suck up; to drink in; to imbibe; as a sponge or as the lacteals of the body. - Bacon
- To learn
- To engross or engage wholly; to occupy fully; as, absorbed in study or in the pursuit of wealth.
- To consume completely.
- To endure.
- To take up by chemical or physical action.
- Heat, light, and electricity are absorbed in the substances into which they pass.
- To assume or pay for as part of a commercial transaction.
Synonyms
- assimilate, engulf, incorporate, swallow up, overwhelm
- sense to suck up or drink in draw, drink in, imbibe, soak up, sop up, suck, suck up, steep, take in, take up
- sense to learn acquire, assimilate, ingest, learn, take in
- sense to consume completely use up
- sense to occupy fully engage, engross, immerse, monopolize, occupy
- sense to endure accommodate, bear, endure, sustain, withstand
- assume, bear, pay for
Antonyms
Translations
to include so that it no longer has separate
existence (1)
- Arabic: , ,
- Chinese: 吸收
- Dutch: absorberen, (in zich) opnemen
- French: absorber
- German: absorbieren, (in sich) aufnehmen
- Italian: assorbire, incorporare, includere
- Japanese: 吸収する (きゅうしゅうする, kyūshūsuru)
- Norwegian: absorbere, oppsluke
- Portuguese: absorver
- Russian: поглощать (pogloščát’) , поглотить (poglotít’) ; вбирать (vbirát’) , вобрать (vobrát’)
- Swedish: absorbera, uppsluka
to suck up or drink in (2)
- Arabic:
- Chinese: 吸入
- Czech: vstřebat
- Dutch: absorberen, opzuigen
- Finnish: imeä
- French: absorber, éponger
- German: aufsaugen
- Greek: απορροφώ
- Italian: assorbire
- Japanese: 吸う (すう, sū)
- Norwegian: absorbere
- Portuguese: absorver
- Russian: поглощать (pogloščát') , поглотить (poglotít’) ; вбирать (vbirát’) , вобрать (vobrát’) ; впитывать (vpítyvat’) , впитать (vpitát’)
- Swedish: absorbera, dra åt sig, fånga upp, suga i sig, suga till sig, suga upp, ta upp
to learn (3)
- Chinese: 吸收
- Czech: vstřebat
- Finnish: omaksua
- French: absorber
- German: aufnehmen
- Greek: αφομοιώνω
- Japanese: 吸収する (きゅうしゅうする, kyūshūsuru)
- Norwegian: absorbere
- Portuguese: absorver
- Russian: поглощать (pogloščát’) , поглотить (poglotít’) ; вбирать (vbirát’) , вобрать (vobrát’) ; впитывать (vpítyvat’) , впитать (vpitát’)
- Swedish: tillgodogöra sig
to occupy fully (4)
- Chinese: 全神貫注, 全神贯注
- Dutch: verdiepen, bezig houden
- French: absorber
- German: (ganz) in Anspruch nehmen, fesseln
- Greek: απορροφώ
- Italian: assorto
- Japanese: 吸収する (きゅうしゅうする, kyūshūsuru)
- Norwegian: oppsluke
- Portuguese: absorver
- Russian: поглощать (pogloščát') , поглотить (poglotít’)
- Swedish: engagera, fängsla, helt uppta, uppsluka
to consume completely (5)
- Chinese: 完全吸收 (wánquán xīshōu)
- Dutch: consumeren, opgebruiken
- German: konsumieren, aufbrauchen
- Italian: assorbire
- Japanese: 処理する (しょりする, shorisuru)
- Norwegian: absorbere
- Portuguese: absorver
- Russian: поглощать (pogloščát') , поглотить (poglotít’)
- Swedish: förbruka, konsumera
to endure (6)
physics: to take up by chemical or physical
action (7)
finance: to assume or pay for (8)
Translations to be checked
Extensive Definition
Absorption may refer to:
Chemistry and biology
- Absorption (chemistry), absorption of particles of gas or liquid in liquid or solid material
- Absorption (skin), a route by which substances can enter the body through the skin
- Absorption (pharmacokinetics), absorption of drugs in body
Physics and mechanical engineering
- Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorption of light or other electromagnetic radiation by a material
- Absorption (acoustics), absorption of sound waves by a material
- Dielectric absorption, a determination of how electrically permitive a material is
- Absorption refrigerator, a refrigerator that runs on surplus heat rather than electricity
- Absorption air conditioning, a type of solar air conditioning
Mathematics and economics
- Absorption law, in mathematics, an identity linking a pair of binary operations
- Absorption (economics), the total demand of an economy for goods and services both from within and without
See also
- Adsorption, the formation of a liquid or gas film on a solid surface.
- Digestion, the uptake of substances by the gastrointestinal tract.
- Flow (psychology), a state of total mental "absorption".
absorb in Catalan: Absorció
absorb in Czech: Absorpce
absorb in German: Absorption
absorb in Spanish: Absorción
absorb in French: Absorption
absorb in Galician: Absorción
absorb in Japanese: 吸収
absorb in Norwegian Nynorsk: Absorpsjon
absorb in Polish: Absorpcja
absorb in Portuguese: Absorção
absorb in Romanian: Absorbţie
absorb in Slovak: Absorpcia
absorb in Finnish: Absorptio
absorb in Tagalog: Absorsyon
Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words
ablate,
absorb the attention, adsorb, appreciate, apprehend, appropriate, arrest, assimilate, be with one,
bleed white, blot, blot up,
burn up, buy up, catch,
catch on, catch up in, charm, chemisorb, chemosorb, come uppermost,
comprehend, conceive, concern, consume, corner, deplete, dig, digest, drain, drain of resources, draw
in, drink, drink in, drink
up, eat, eat up, embarrass, embody, enchant, engage, engage the attention,
engage the mind, engage the thoughts, engross, engross the mind,
engross the thoughts, enmesh, entangle, enthrall, erode, exercise, exhaust, expend, fascinate, fathom, fill the mind, filter in,
finish, finish off,
follow, get, get hold of, get the drift, get
the idea, get the picture, gobble, gobble up, grab, grasp, grip, have, have it taped, hold, hold spellbound, hold the
interest, hypnotize,
imbibe, imbue, immerse, implicate, impoverish, impregnate, incorporate, infiltrate, infuse, ingest, interest, involve, involve the interest,
ken, know, learn, master, mesmerize, metabolize, monopolize, monopolize the
thoughts, obsess, obsess
the mind, occupy, occupy
the attention, occupy the mind, osmose, percolate in, permeate, predigest, preoccupy, read, realize, savvy, seep in, seize, seize the meaning, seize
the mind, sense, sew up,
slurp up, soak in, soak up, sorb, spellbind, spend, sponge, squander, suck dry, suck into,
swallow, swallow up,
swill up, take, take in,
take up, tangle, understand, use up, waste
away, wear away