interstitial

adjective

in·​ter·​sti·​tial ˌin-tər-ˈsti-shəl 

1

: occurring in or being an interval or intervening space or segment : of, relating to, or forming an interstice

an interstitial space

… the site has been running interstitial ads, which consist of a full page of advertising between editorial pages, for a little more than a year.

—Carl Sullivan

2

a

: situated within but not restricted to or characteristic of a particular organ or tissue

—used especially of fibrous tissue

b

: affecting the interstitial tissues of an organ or part

interstitial cystitis

3

: being or relating to a crystalline compound in which usually small atoms or ions of a nonmetal occupy holes between the larger metal atoms or ions in the crystal lattice

interstitially

ˌin-tər-ˈsti-shə-lē 

adverb

Examples of interstitial in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Some of the most common causes include lung damage from congestive heart failure, diffuse alveolar hemorrhage, interstitial lung diseases, lung cancer, and viral pneumonia.49 Congestive Heart Failure Heart failure occurs if your heart is unable to pump blood throughout your body efficiently. —Leah Groth, Health, 30 Mar. 2024

The cause was interstitial lung disease, a lung condition complicated by double pneumonia, family members announced in a statement posted to social media. —Darrell Smith, Sacramento Bee, 28 Mar. 2024

In fact, at bigger publishers, the job of a book’s visual design might be broken down further, with a whole other employee tasked with designing the inside of the book, from the look of chapter pages to the interstitial marks separating sections to the patterns on the inside of the covers. —Hazlitt, 27 Mar. 2024

Typically at an episode’s end, drone cameras offer long, luscious, interstitial looks at Vacationland: The trees begin turning in autumn, the light glints off the water, the views stretch on forever. —Olivia McCormack, Washington Post, 18 Mar. 2024

The cause was interstitial pulmonary fibrosis, said his wife, Kristin Thompson, a prominent film scholar who frequently collaborated with him. —Michael S. Rosenwald, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2024

Madeleine Oldham’s sound design is filled with subtle birdsong and aggressive looping interstitial music. —Sam Hurwitt, The Mercury News, 23 Feb. 2024

Ad-free videos have been getting the most aggressive promotion lately, with Google cracking down on ad-block users by blocking video playback and displaying interstitial pop-ups. —Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, 2 Feb. 2024

The study observed 12 healthy cats and 20 cats suffering from feline interstitial cystitis, a type of bladder inflammation. —Donna Sarkar, Discover Magazine, 30 Nov. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1646, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

interstitial

adjective

in·​ter·​sti·​tial ˌint-ər-ˈstish-əl 

: relating to or located in the interstices

interstitially

-ˈstish-ə-lē 

adverb

Medical Definition

interstitial

adjective

in·​ter·​sti·​tial ˌint-ər-ˈstish-əl 

1

: situated within but not restricted to or characteristic of a particular organ or tissue

—used especially of fibrous tissue

2

: affecting the interstitial tissues of an organ or part

interstitial hepatitis

3

: occurring in the part of a fallopian tube in the wall of the uterus

interstitial pregnancy

interstitially

-ə-lē 

adverb