A condition of incomplete development or maturation, where something fails to reach its complete or finished state.
From Greek 'ateles' (incomplete, not finished) + '-osis' (a condition or state), where 'ateles' comes from 'a-' (without) + 'telos' (end, completion). The term evolved in medical contexts to describe developmental arrest.
This word shows how Greek philosophers' concept of 'telos'—the idea that everything has a purpose and endpoint—became embedded in medical language to describe when development gets stuck before reaching that goal.
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