constipation
/ˌkɒnstɪˈpeɪʃən/ noun
Forms constipations
- noun A state of the bowels in which the evacuations are infrequent and difficult, or the intestines become filled with hardened faeces.
- noun The act of crowding anything into a lesser space, or the state of being crowded or pressed together; condensation.
Synonyms
costiveness irregularity stultification impairment deadening
Etymology
First attested in the beginning of the 15ᵗʰ century, in Middle English; inherited from Middle English constipacioun, borrowed from Medieval Latin constīpātiō or its Old French equivalent, from cōnstīpō + -tiō. By surface analysis, constipate + -ion.
Webster’s 1913
- noun Act of crowding anything into a less compass, or the state of being crowded or pressed together; condensation. [Obs.]
- noun A state of the bowels in which the evacuations are infrequent and difficult, or the intestines become filled with hardened faces; costiveness.
Etymology [L. constipatio a crowding together: cf.F. constipation.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “constipation”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details