| Library / English Dictionary |
DISSIMILATION
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Breakdown in living organisms of more complex substances into simpler ones together with release of energy
Synonyms:
catabolism; destructive metabolism; dissimilation; katabolism
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural processes
Hypernyms ("dissimilation" is a kind of...):
biological process; organic process (a process occurring in living organisms)
Holonyms ("dissimilation" is a part of...):
metabolic process; metabolism (the organic processes (in a cell or organism) that are necessary for life)
Sense 2
Meaning:
A linguistic process by which one of two similar sounds in a word becomes less like the other
Example:
the Old French MARBRE became the English MARBLE by dissimilation
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural processes
Hypernyms ("dissimilation" is a kind of...):
linguistic process (a process involved in human language)
Derivation:
dissimilate (become dissimilar or less similar)
dissimilate (become dissimilar by changing the sound qualities)
