dehiscence
Americannoun
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Biology. the release of materials by the splitting open of an organ or tissue.
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Botany. the natural bursting open of capsules, fruits, anthers, etc., for the discharge of their contents.
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Surgery. the bursting open of a surgically closed wound.
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The spontaneous opening at maturity of a plant structure, such as a fruit, anther, or sporangium, to release its contents.
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Compare indehiscence
Other Word Forms
- dehiscent adjective
- nondehiscent adjective
Etymology
Origin of dehiscence
1820–30; < New Latin dēhiscentia, equivalent to Latin dēhiscent- stem of dēhiscēns, present participle of dēhiscere ( dehisce ) + -ia; -ence
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“I had superior semicircular canal dehiscence. In English that means I had a hole in my head.”
From Washington Post
According to a 2010 study in the Archives of Gynecology and obstetrics, 1.2 percent of C-section recoveries are impacted by dehiscence.
From Fox News
Gopen is one of a handful of physicians with expertise in superior semicircular canal dehiscence, or SSCD, a condition that results from an abnormal opening in the inner ear’s balance chamber.
From Washington Times
In that condition, called superior semicircular canal dehiscence, an opening in one of the canals of the inner ear causes vertigo and/or auditory disturbances.
From Washington Post
The syndrome results from a dehiscence — a thinning or a hole in the temporal bone, which covers the fluid-filled canal in the inner ear.
From Washington Post
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.