suspended animation

noun

Definition of suspended animation

1 : temporary suspension of the vital functions (as in persons nearly drowned)

2 : a condition (such as inactivity) likened to suspended animation

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Examples of suspended animation in a Sentence

animals that sleep through the winter in a state of suspended animation the husband's feeling that their love life was in suspended animation while his wife lavished all her attention on the new baby

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And such learned behaviours continue even after an animal has been in suspended animation for decades. — The Economist, "Worm holeThe first voyager to another star may be a worm or a tardigrade," 2 Nov. 2017 Some of the specimens in Dr Rothman’s laboratory have been in suspended animation at -70°C for 33 years. — The Economist, "Worm holeThe first voyager to another star may be a worm or a tardigrade," 2 Nov. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'suspended animation.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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The first known use of suspended animation was in 1787

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More Definitions for suspended animation

suspended animation

noun

English Language Learners Definition of suspended animation

: a state in which the processes of the body (such as blood circulation) stop or become very slow for a period of time while a person or animal is unconscious

See the full definition for suspended animation in the English Language Learners Dictionary

suspended animation

noun

sus·pend·ed animation | \ sə-ˈspend-əd-