Library / English Dictionary

ATROPHY

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected form: atrophied   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Any weakening or degeneration (especially through lack of use)

Synonyms:

atrophy; withering

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Hypernyms ("atrophy" is a kind of...):

weakening (becoming weaker)

Derivation:

atrophy (undergo atrophy)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A decrease in size of an organ caused by disease or disuse

Synonyms:

atrophy; wasting; wasting away

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Hypernyms ("atrophy" is a kind of...):

symptom ((medicine) any sensation or change in bodily function that is experienced by a patient and is associated with a particular disease)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "atrophy"):

amyotrophia; amyotrophy (progressive wasting of muscle tissues)

tabes (wasting of the body during a chronic disease)

kraurosis (atrophy and shriveling of the skin or mucous membrane)

Derivation:

atrophy (undergo atrophy)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Undergo atrophy

Example:

Muscles that are not used will atrophy

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Hypernyms (to "atrophy" is one way to...):

shrink; shrivel; shrivel up; wither (wither, as with a loss of moisture)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Somebody's (body part) ----s

Derivation:

atrophy (any weakening or degeneration (especially through lack of use))

atrophy (a decrease in size of an organ caused by disease or disuse)

Credits

 Context examples: 

Chromosomal rearrangements affecting the gene may be associated with epileptic encephalopathy with spastic tetraparesis and severe psychomotor retardation associated with cerebral atrophy, developmental delay with recurrent infections or lymphoma.

(NKAIN2 wt Allele, NCI Thesaurus)

Atrophy of the optic disk which may be congenital or acquired.

(Optic Atrophy, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

Clinical signs include Horner's syndrome, shoulder pain radiating down the arm in the ulnar distribution followed by edema and atrophy of the affected extremity.

(Pancoast Syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

Examples of neuromuscular disorders include: • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis • Multiple sclerosis • Myasthenia gravis • Spinal muscular atrophy

(Neuromuscular Disorders, NIH)

This gene is involved in the modification of spinal muscular atrophy.

(NAIP Gene, NCI Thesaurus)

A disorder characterized by involuntary and irregular muscle contractions not associated with muscle weakness or atrophy.

(Myokymia, NCI Thesaurus)

Representative examples include muscular dystrophy, metabolic myopathies, muscular atrophies, and dermatomyositis.

(Myopathy, NCI Thesaurus)

Atrophy of the cerebrum caused by focal or generalized neuronal loss.

(Cerebral Atrophy, NCI Thesaurus)

It is characterized by muscle atrophy and weakness in the feet, legs, hands, and arms and loss of sensation in the limbs.

(Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease, NCI Thesaurus)

There is extensive villous atrophy of the small intestinal mucosa, which is heavily infiltrated by small lymphocytes and plasma cells.

(Alpha Heavy Chain Disease, NCI Thesaurus)