assimilation (2009-06-27)

Part of Speech: noun

Pronunciation: [ê-'si-mê-leyt]

Definition: Incorporation or absorption into something, as food is assimilated into the body or an immigrant is assimilated into a new culture; (linguistics) assuming a property or properties of an adjacent or nearby sound.

Usage: The quintessential assimilator is a sponge, so think of it when you say things like, "My mind isn't assimilating everything you say, Gomer; could you speak a bit more slowly?" This is also a good word to refer to successful incorporation into a social organization, "I tend not to assimilate readily into groups held together by a common interest in work."

Suggested Usage: "Assimilation" is the noun from "assimilate" and the adjective is "assimilative." Anything that assimilates is an assimilator. What could be more appropriate than today's word itself a result of (linguistic) assimilation: beginning in Latin as ad + similare, the [d] of the prefix ad- absorbed all the properties of the following [s] to become an [s] itself, hence "assimilare" (see Etymology for details).

Etymology: From Latin assimilare, assimilat- "to make similar to" based on ad- "to(ward)" + similes "like." "Similis" also underlies English "similar" and its root can be found in "simple," semper "always" of semper fidelis "always faithful," and "simultaneous." The same root emerges as Greek homos "same" of "homosexual" and "homogenous." It directly descended to English as "same" and appears similarly in Russian as sam "self," found in samovar, literally "self-boiler" and samizdat "self-publisher."