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atrophy

noun
/ˈæt.ɹə.fi/

Etymology

Borrowed from French atrophie, from Latin atrophia, from Ancient Greek ἀτροφία (atrophía, “a wasting away”), from ἄτροφος (átrophos, “ill-fed, un-nourished”), from ἀ- (a-, “not”) + τροφή (trophḗ, “nourishment”), from τρέφω (tréphō, “to fatten”). Equivalent to a- + -trophy.

  1. derived from ἀτροφία
  2. derived from atrophia
  3. borrowed from atrophie

Definitions

  1. A reduction in the functionality of an organ caused by disease, injury or lack of use.

  2. To wither or waste away.

    • Boy. I love summer vacation. I can feel my brain beginning to atrophy already.
    • The M10 highway looks normal enough at the southern limits of St. Petersburg, but then, with a jolt, it begins to atrophy. For the next 430 miles the surface of the highway, while paved, varies from corduroy to jaw-rattling patchwork.

  3. To cause to waste away or become abortive

    To cause to waste away or become abortive; to starve or weaken.

    • Cold silence has a tendency to atrophy any sense of compassion

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for atrophy. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA