desiccation

noun

des·​ic·​ca·​tion ˌde-si-ˈkā-shən 

: the act or process of drying or desiccating something or the state of being or becoming dried up : removal or loss of moisture : thorough drying

desiccation of soil

This … led to the increasingly dry climate and eventual desiccation of all Central Asia and Tibet.

—Frits Staal

Examples of desiccation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The entire sea in that area shallowed, freshened, and then dried out, leaving deep desiccation cracks. —Howard Lee, Ars Technica, 8 Feb. 2023

These plants tend to be more susceptible to desiccation and freezing during winter drawdowns leading to lower abundance the following warm season. —Debbie Archer Special To The Commercial, arkansasonline.com, 3 Dec. 2023

The human impact on this eco-region has several causes: land use for agriculture; the conversion of forest to cattle pastures; hunting and harvesting of species; logging and the increase in forest heating and desiccation; and fires caused by human activity. —Alejandro Manrique, Ars Technica, 10 Feb. 2023

Saturating the soil protects plants from desiccation. —Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Dec. 2023

But at that time, the gland only made a fatty acid solvent similar to the hydrocarbons that almost all insects make in their cuticles to prevent desiccation and to communicate chemically. —Viviane Callier, Scientific American, 27 Sep. 2023

The rain brought by Hilary was a sharp departure from weather patterns in California, where most precipitation falls in winter and where summers often bring extreme desiccation. —Thomas Fuller, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2023

In general, as the atmosphere warms with climate change, the air gets thirstier and thirstier, leading to further desiccation. —WIRED, 10 Aug. 2023

Boothby says that tardigrade cells’ ability to survive desiccation could be the key to stabilizing vaccines and pharmaceuticals so that they can be stored at room temperature, instead of relying on fridges and freezers. —Kate Golembiewski, Discover Magazine, 8 June 2023

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

desiccation

noun

des·​ic·​ca·​tion ˌdes-i-ˈkā-shən 

: the act or process of desiccating or the state of being or becoming desiccated

especially : a complete or nearly complete deprivation of moisture (as by vaporization or by evaporation) or of water not chemically combined : dehydration

from the long-wave diathermy machine two distinct currents are obtained which produce desiccation and electrocoagulation respectively

—W. H. Schmidt