Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Related Searches
on Ask.com
Browse Nearby Entries
absorb
8 dictionary results for: absorb
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
ab·sorb       [ab-sawrb, -zawrb] Pronunciation Key
–verb (used with object)
1.to suck up or drink in (a liquid); soak up: A sponge absorbs water.
2.to swallow up the identity or individuality of; incorporate: The empire absorbed many small nations.
3.to involve the full attention of; to engross or engage wholly: so absorbed in a book that he did not hear the bell.
4.to occupy or fill: This job absorbs all of my time.
5.to take up or receive by chemical or molecular action: Carbonic acid is formed when water absorbs carbon dioxide.
6.to take in without echo, recoil, or reflection: to absorb sound and light; to absorb shock.
7.to take in and utilize: The market absorbed all the computers we could build. Can your brain absorb all this information?
8.to pay for (costs, taxes, etc.): The company will absorb all the research costs.
9.Archaic. to swallow up.
[Origin: 1480–90; < L absorbére, equiv. to ab- ab- + sorbére to suck in, swallow]

—Related forms
ab·sorb·a·ble, adjective
ab·sorb·a·bil·i·ty, noun

—Synonyms 2. assimilate, consume, devour, engulf; destroy.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
ab·sorb       (əb-sôrb', -zôrb')  Pronunciation Key 
tr.v.   ab·sorbed, ab·sorb·ing, ab·sorbs
  1. To take (something) in through or as through pores or interstices.
  2. To occupy the full attention, interest, or time of; engross. See Synonyms at monopolize.
  3. To retain (radiation or sound, for example) wholly, without reflection or transmission.
  4. To take in; assimilate: immigrants who were absorbed into the social mainstream.
  5. To learn; acquire: "Matisse absorbed the lesson and added to it a new language of color" (Peter Plagen).
  6. To receive (an impulse) without echo or recoil: a fabric that absorbs sound; a bumper that absorbs impact.
  7. To assume or pay for (a cost or costs).
  8. To endure; accommodate: couldn't absorb the additional hardships.
  9. To use up; consume: The project has absorbed all of our department's resources.


[Middle English, to swallow up, from Old French absorber, from Latin absorbēre : ab-, away; see ab-1 + sorbēre, to suck.]

ab·sorb'a·bil'i·ty n., ab·sorb'a·ble adj., ab·sorb'ed·ly adv., ab·sorb'er n., ab·sorb'ing·ly adv.
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
absorb 
1490, from M.Fr. absorber (O.Fr. assorbir), from L. absorbere "to swallow up," from ab- "from" + sorbere "suck in," from PIE base *srebh- "to suck, absorb" (cf. Armenian arbi "I drank," Gk. rhopheo "to sup greedily up, gulp down," Lith. srebiu "to drink greedily"). Absorbent (n.) first recorded 1718. Absorbing in the fig. sense of "very interesting" first recorded 1876.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
absorb

verb
1. become imbued; "The liquids, light, and gases absorb" 
2. take up mentally; "he absorbed the knowledge or beliefs of his tribe" 
3. take up, as of debts or payments; "absorb the costs for something" 
4. take in, also metaphorically; "The sponge absorbs water well"; "She drew strength from the minister's words" 
5. cause to become one with; "The sales tax is absorbed into the state income tax" 
6. suck or take up or in; "A black star absorbs all matter" [ant: emit] 
7. devote (oneself) fully to; "He immersed himself into his studies" [syn: steep] 
8. assimilate or take in; "The immigrants were quickly absorbed into society" 
9. consume all of one's attention or time; "Her interest in butterflies absorbs her completely" 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

absorb ab·sorb (əb-sôrb', -zôrb')
v. ab·sorbed, ab·sorb·ing, ab·sorbs

  1. To take in by absorption.
  2. To reduce the intensity of transmitted light.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Wallstreet Words - Cite This Source - Share This

absorb

To offset sell orders or a new security offering with buy orders.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms for Today's Investor by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law - Cite This Source - Share This
Main Entry: ab·sorb
Function: transitive verb
1 : to make (a right guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution) applicable to the states
2 a : to bear or assume the burden of absorbed by the company> b : to lessen the tax liability for absorb the income —D. Q. Posin>

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Absorb

Ab*sorb"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Absorbed; p. pr. & vb. n. Absorbing.] [L. absorbere; ab + sorbere to suck in, akin to Gr. ?: cf. F. absorber.]

1. To swallow up; to engulf; to overwhelm; to cause to disappear as if by swallowing up; to use up; to include. "Dark oblivion soon absorbs them all." --Cowper.

The large cities absorb the wealth and fashion. --W. Irving.

2. To suck up; to drink in; to imbibe; as a sponge or as the lacteals of the body. --Bacon.

3. To engross or engage wholly; to occupy fully; as, absorbed in study or the pursuit of wealth.

4. To take up by cohesive, chemical, or any molecular action, as when charcoal absorbs gases. So heat, light, and electricity are absorbed or taken up in the substances into which they pass. --Nichol. --p. 8

Syn: To Absorb, Engross, Swallow up, Engulf.

Usage: These words agree in one general idea, that of completely taking up. They are chiefly used in a figurative sense and may be distinguished by a reference to their etymology. We speak of a person as absorbed (lit., drawn in, swallowed up) in study or some other employment of the highest interest. We speak of a person as ebgrossed (lit., seized upon in the gross, or wholly) by something which occupies his whole time and thoughts, as the acquisition of wealth, or the attainment of honor. We speak of a person (under a stronger image) as swallowed up and lost in that which completely occupies his thoughts and feelings, as in grief at the death of a friend, or in the multiplied cares of life. We speak of a person as engulfed in that which (like a gulf) takes in all his hopes and interests; as, engulfed in misery, ruin, etc.

That grave question which had begun to absorb the Christian mind -- the marriage of the clergy. --Milman.

Too long hath love engrossed Britannia's stage, And sunk to softness all our tragic rage. --Tickell.

Should not the sad occasion swallow up My other cares? --Addison.

And in destruction's river Engulf and swallow those. --Sir P. Sidney.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Share This:Share This: digg.comShare This: ma.gnolia.comShare This: www.stumbleupon.comShare This: del.icio.usShare This: FacebookShare This: favorites.live.comShare This: www.technorati.comShare This: furl.netShare This: myweb2.search.yahoo.comShare This: www.google.com