osmoticity
|os-mo-tic-i-ty|
🇺🇸
/ˌɑzmoʊˈtɪsɪti/
🇬🇧
/ˌɒzməˈtɪsɪti/
capacity to cause or undergo osmosis
Etymology
'osmoticity' originates from Modern English, specifically the adjective 'osmotic' + the nominalizing suffix '-ity', where 'osmotic' ultimately comes from Greek 'ōsmōtikós' (from 'ōsmē') meaning 'a push or impulse' and the suffix '-ity' (via Latin '-itas') means 'state or quality'.
'osmoticity' formed by adding English '-ity' to 'osmotic'. 'Osmotic' was formed from 'osmosis' (coined in the early 19th century from Greek 'ōsmōsis', from 'ōsma/ōsmē' meaning 'a pushing or impulse'), and passed into Modern English scientific vocabulary through Neo-Latin and French influences.
Initially related to the Greek sense of a 'push' or 'impulse' (as used in 'osmosis'), the term's modern formation 'osmoticity' came to mean specifically the 'state or quality' related to osmosis—the capacity to cause or undergo solvent movement through a membrane.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the quality or state of being osmotic; the capacity of a substance or solution to cause or undergo osmosis (movement of solvent through a semipermeable membrane).
The osmoticity of the solution determined the direction and rate of water movement across the membrane.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Noun 2
(less common) The degree or magnitude of osmotic pressure in a solution — how strongly the solution tends to draw solvent by osmosis.
Researchers compared the osmoticity of several saline samples to assess their effects on cells.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/12/10 04:50