/ab sawrp"sheuhn, -zawrp"-/ , n.
1. the act of absorbing.
2. the state or process of being absorbed.
3. assimilation; incorporation: the absorption of small farms into one big one.
4. uptake of substances by a tissue, as of nutrients through the wall of the intestine.
5. a taking in or reception by molecular or chemical action, as of gases or liquids.
6. Physics. the removal of energy or particles from a beam by the medium through which the beam propagates.
7. complete attention or preoccupation; deep engrossment: absorption in one's work.
[ 1590-1600; absorption- (s. of absorptio ), equiv. to absorpt ( us ), ptp. of absorbere to ABSORB + -ion- -ION ]