Wordsmith.org: the magic of words


A.Word.A.Day

About | Media | Search | Contact  


Home

Today's Word

Subscribe

Archives



Jun 30, 2015
This week’s theme
What’s a letter here or there between friends?

This week’s words
connate
sorb
ramble
fardel
maunder

sorb
Bookmark and Share Facebook Twitter Digg MySpace Bookmark and Share
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg

sorb

PRONUNCIATION:
(sorb)

MEANING:
verb intr.:
1. To take up and hold by absorption.
2. To take up and hold by adsorption.

NOTES:
So what’s the difference between absorption and adsorption, besides a turned-around letter b? Absorption is when a substance is completely assimilated by another while in adsorption the substance deposits on the surface of another.

ETYMOLOGY:
Back-formation from absorb, from Latin absorbere, from ab- (away) + sorbere (to suck). Earliest documented use: 1909.

USAGE:
“Nitrate is an anion and is not attracted to or sorbed by soil particles.”
Philippe Quevauviller, et al; Wastewater Quality Monitoring and Treatment; Wiley; 2006.

See more usage examples of sorb in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Life is a jest, and all things show it, / I thought so once, and now I know it. -John Gay, poet and dramatist (30 Jun 1685-1732)

We need your help

Help us continue to spread the magic of words to readers everywhere

Donate

Subscriber Services
Awards | Stats | Links | Privacy Policy
Contribute | Advertise

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith