inflow

English

Etymology

From Middle English inflowen, equivalent to in- +‎ flow.

Noun

inflow (countable and uncountable, plural inflows)

1. The act or process of flowing in or into
2. Anything which flows in or into

   The inflow of air

3. (figurative) Influence from outside.
   • 2000, Sandra Marie Schneiders, Finding the Treasure:

     But there is also "top down causality" in which the entire system, as a whole, is affected by the inflow or influence of pattern formation, or "information."

   • 2008, Richard Calichman, Overcoming Modernity:

     Broadly speaking, there are two cases in which a national culture is subjected to the sudden inflow or influence of a foreign culture: (1) when the former is conquered by the latter and (2) when it conquers the latter.

   • 2010, Gabriel Ezutah, Trail of Immortality:

     Open yourself completely to the inflow and influence of the music and light of God through daily practice of the spiritual exercises, which he gives to you.

Synonyms

• influx

Antonyms

• outflow
• outflux

Related terms

• inflood

Translations

a flow in

• Bulgarian: втичане n (vtičane), вливане (vlivane)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 流入 (zh) (liúrù)

• Finnish: sisäänvirtaus
• French: afflux (fr) m
• German: Zufluss (de) m
• Greek: εισροή (el) f (eisroḯ)
• Japanese: 流入 (ja) (りゅうにゅう, ryūnyū)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: innstrømming m or f, innstrømning m or f

• Russian: прито́к (ru) m (pritók)

Verb

inflow (third-person singular simple present inflows, present participle inflowing, simple past and past participle inflowed)

1. To flow in.
   • 1676, Richard Wiseman, Severall Chirurgicall Treatises, London: […] E. Flesher and J. Macock, for R[ichard] Royston […], and B[enjamin] Took, […], →OCLC:

     the discusing and drying up of the inflowed Humour

Anagrams

• flowin'