osmosis
/ɒzˈməʊsɪs/ (bre, ipa) · /ɑːzˈməʊsɪs/ (ame, ipa) · /äz-ˈmō-səs äs-/ (ame, mw)
osmosis — noun
1. the movement of water or another liquid through a thin wall of a cell, plant, or
the movement of water or another liquid through a thin wall of a cell, plant, or other living tissue, from a weaker solution to a stronger one until both sides have the same strength.
Élise watched the experiment as water entered the cell by osmosis.
by osmosis (typical adverbial pattern)
Plant roots take up water from the wet soil through osmosis.
through osmosis + biological subject (plant)
The biology teacher used a potato slice in salty water to show osmosis to the class.
Red blood cells can burst when water moves into them by osmosis.
- diffusion
broader term for any spreading of particles; osmosis is specifically diffusion of a liquid through a membrane.
文法句型
by osmosis
through osmosis
用法筆記
Almost always uncountable; treated as a process, not a countable event. Common verbs: 'occur by osmosis', 'take place through osmosis', 'water moves by osmosis'.
常見錯誤
2. the way someone slowly takes in knowledge, ideas, or habits without trying — for
the way someone slowly takes in knowledge, ideas, or habits without trying — for example, picking up a language just by living among speakers, or learning office customs by sitting near experienced colleagues.
Karim picked up Italian by osmosis during his three years in Naples.
pick up [language] by osmosis — core figurative pattern
New interns at the law firm seem to learn court customs by osmosis from senior colleagues.
learn [skill/knowledge] by osmosis
Lan absorbed her grandmother's recipes through osmosis, never once writing them down.
Children of musicians often learn rhythm by osmosis long before any formal lessons.
After living next door to a baker for two years, Mira understood the timing of every loaf almost by osmosis.
- absorption
more neutral; lacks the 'effortless, unconscious' connotation of osmosis.
- assimilation
formal; emphasises the result of being taken in, rather than the gradual process.
- study
denotes deliberate effort, the opposite of osmosis.
文法句型
learn by osmosis
absorb by osmosis
pick up by osmosis
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: this sense is figurative and refers to people absorbing knowledge or habits, not liquids. Almost always with 'by' or 'through'; never used with an article.