Apepsia

/əˈpɛpʃə/ noun

Definition

A medical condition marked by a lack of or deficiency in digestion; the inability to digest food properly.

Etymology

From Greek 'a-' (without, lack of) + 'pepsis' (digestion) + '-ia' (medical condition suffix). The root 'pepsic' comes from 'peptein' (to digest), which ultimately relates to Proto-Indo-European 'pek-' (to cook).

Kelly Says

The Greek root 'pepsin' (the digestive enzyme) comes from the same source as 'apepsia'—so these words are literally about cooking or breaking down food, which is what digestion does at a molecular level.

Related Words

Explore More Words

Get the Word Orb API

Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.