n.
Pronunciation: ˌ a-t ə - ' lek-t ə -s ə s
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -ta · ses \ - ˌ s ē z \
Etymology: New Latin, from Greek atel ē s incomplete, defective (fr. a- 2 a- + telos end) + ektasis extension, from ekteinein to stretch out, from ex- + teinein to stretch ― more at TELOS , THIN
Date: 1859
: collapse of the expanded lung also : defective expansion of the pulmonary alveoli at birth