n., pl., -ses (-sēz).
- Diffusion of fluid through a semipermeable membrane from a solution with a low solute concentration to a solution with a higher solute concentration until there is an equal concentration of fluid on both sides of the membrane.
- The tendency of fluids to diffuse in such a manner.
- A gradual, often unconscious process of assimilation or absorption: learned French by osmosis while residing in Paris for 15 years.
[From obsolete osmose, from earlier endosmose, from French : Greek endo-, endo- + Greek ōsmos, thrust, push (from ōthein, to push).]
osmotic os·mot'ic (-mŏt'ĭk) adj.osmotically os·mot'i·cal·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
