osmosis

os·mo·sis

noun \äz-ˈmō-səs, äs-\

Definition of OSMOSIS

1

: movement of a solvent (as water) through a semipermeable membrane (as of a living cell) into a solution of higher solute concentration that tends to equalize the concentrations of solute on the two sides of the membrane

2

: a process of absorption or diffusion suggestive of the flow of osmotic action; especially : a usually effortless often unconscious assimilation <learned a number of languages by osmosis — Roger Kimball>

Examples of OSMOSIS

1. She seems to learn foreign languages by osmosis.

Origin of OSMOSIS

New Latin, short for endosmosis

First Known Use: 1867

Other Chemical Engineering Terms

alkali, cation, decant, hygroscopic, isotope, oxidize, slurry, solute, viscous

Rhymes with OSMOSIS

cirrhosis, hypnosis, kenosis, lordosis, meiosis, miosis, mitosis, narcosis, necrosis, neurosis, orthosis, prognosis, psychosis, sclerosis, stenosis, thrombosis

os·mo·sis

noun \äz-ˈmō-səs, äs-\   (Medical Dictionary)

plural os·mo·ses \-ˌsēz\

Medical Definition of OSMOSIS

: movement of a solvent through a semipermeable membrane (as of a living cell) into a solution of higher solute concentration that tends to equalize the concentrations of solute on the two sides of the membrane

osmosis

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Spontaneous passage or diffusion of water or other solvent through a semipermeable membrane. If a solution is separated from a pure solvent by a membrane that is permeable to the solvent but not to the solute, the solution will tend to become more dilute by absorbing solvent through the membrane. The pressure caused by the migration of solvent through the membrane is called osmotic pressure.