[a-truh-fee] 
noun, verb, -phied, -phy⋅ing.| 1. | Also, a⋅tro⋅phi⋅a [uh-troh-fee-uh] . Pathology. a wasting away of the body or of an organ or part, as from defective nutrition or nerve damage. |
| 2. | degeneration, decline, or decrease, as from disuse: He argued that there was a progressive atrophy of freedom and independence of thought. |
| 3. | to affect with or undergo atrophy. |
| at·ro·phy (āt'rə-fē) n. pl. at·ro·phies
v. tr. To cause to wither or deteriorate; affect with atrophy. v. intr. To waste away; wither or deteriorate. [Late Latin atrophia, from Greek atrophiā, from atrophos, ill-nourished : a-, without; see a-1 + trophē, food.] a·troph'ic (ā-trŏf'ĭk) adj. |
The wasting away or decrease in size of an organ or tissue in the body. When a body part is affected by paralysis, the muscles may atrophy through lack of use.
Note: The term is also used in a more general way to refer to a wasting process: “Since he stopped playing, his piano skills have atrophied.”
atrophy at·ro·phy (āt'rə-fē)
n.
A wasting or decrease in the size of an organ or tissue, as from death and reabsorption of cells, diminished cellular proliferation, pressure, ischemia, malnutrition, decreased function, or hormonal changes. Also called atrophia. v. at·ro·phied, at·ro·phy·ing, at·ro·phies
To undergo atrophy.
trə