ə̇nˈdəkshən noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English induccioun, from Anglo-French or Medieval Latin; Anglo-French induccion, from Medieval Latin induction-, inductio, from inductus (past participle of inducere to induct) + Latin -ion-, -io -ion
1. : the act or process of inducting, the state of being inducted, or an instance or product of induction: as
a.
(1) : a formal or symbolic and ceremonial bringing into or introducing to actual possession (as of an office)
my induction into the presidency — F.D.Roosevelt
(2) Eng. eccl. law : the ceremony of giving the actual possession of an ecclesiastical living or its temporalities to a clergyman already presented and instituted
b. : an initial experience : an exposure that introduces one to something previously mysterious or unknown : initiation
six weeks of hard physical effort was his induction into the arts of war
this grade of exercise supplies easy induction to the technique for learners — J.M.Mitchell
c. : an official usually formal and ceremonial admittance (as to membership in a club)
awaiting his acceptance by and induction into the secret order
d. : the formality by which a civilian is inducted into military service under the provisions of a draft law
2.
[Middle English induccioun, from Middle French or Latin; Middle French induction reasoning from a part to a whole, from Latin induction-, inductio (translation of Greek epagōgē ), from inductus (past participle of inducere to lead in, introduce, induce) + -ion-, -io -ion]
a. : an instance of reasoning from a part to a whole, from particulars to generals, or from the individual to the universal : a conclusion arrived at by reasoning from a part to a whole, from particulars to generals, or from the individual to the universal : inference 2
b.
(1) : reasoning from a part to a whole, from particulars to generals, or from the individual to the universal — compare baconian induction , enumerative induction , epagoge
(2) : a process of mathematical demonstration in which the general validity of a law is inferred from its observed validity in particular cases by proving that if the law holds in a certain case it must hold in the next and therefore in succeeding cases
3.
[Latin induction-, inductio action of introducing, from inductus (past participle of inducere to lead in, introduce, induce) + -ion-, -io -ion]
a. : a preface, prologue, or introductory scene especially of an early English play
b. obsolete : something that leads into something else
c. obsolete : an initial step or action
4.
[Latin induction-, inductio action of introducing]
: the act or process of introducing, the state of being introduced, or an instance or product of introducing: as
a. : the act of bringing forward or adducing (as facts or particulars)
b. : the act of causing, initiating, or bringing on or about especially at an early time or to a preliminary degree
induction of labor
specifically : the establishment of an initial state of anesthesia often with an agent other than that used subsequently to maintain the anesthetic state
c. : the production of an electric charge, magnetism, or electromotive force in an object (as an electric conductor, a magnetizable body, an electric circuit) by the proximity without contact of a similarly energized body or by the variation of a magnetic flux — see electromagnetic induction , electrostatic induction , magnetic induction , mutual induction , self-induction
d. : arousal by indirect stimulation (as contrast colors from parts of the retina adjacent to a directy stimulated area)
e. : the inspiration of the fuel-air charge from the carburetor into the combustion chamber of an internal-combustion engine
f. : the sum of the processes by which the fate of embryonic cells is determined and morphogenetic differentiation brought about