peristalsis

English

WOTD – 5 October 2010

Etymology

From Ancient Greek δύναμις περισταλτική (dúnamis peristaltikḗ, “the action of the bowels by which their contents are propelled”) , from περιστέλλω (peristéllō, “to wrap around”), from περι- (peri-, “around”) +‎ στέλλω (stéllō, “to make ready, to prepare”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˌpɛɹɪˈstalsɪs/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˌpɛɹɪˈstælsɪs/, /ˌpɛɹɪˈstɑlsɪs/

• Audio (US):

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  Audio (US):

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Noun

peristalsis (countable and uncountable, plural peristalses)

1. (medicine) The rhythmic, wave-like contraction and relaxation of muscles so as to propagate motion, as of food in the digestive tract.

Synonyms

• enterocinesia
• vermiculation (dated)

Derived terms

• antiperistalsis
• aperistalsis
• dysperistalsis
• hyperperistalsis
• hypoperistalsis
• normoperistalsis
• peristaltic
• peristaltically
• retroperistalsis

 

Translations

rhythmic contraction of the digestive tract

• Armenian: գալարակծկանք (hy) (galarakckankʻ), պերիստալտիկա (hy) (peristaltika)
• Belarusian: перыстальтыка f (pjerystalʹtyka)
• Bulgarian: перисталтика (bg) (peristaltika)
• Catalan: peristaltisme m, peristalsi f
• Czech: peristaltika f
• Danish: peristaltik
• Finnish: peristalttinen liike, peristaltiikka (fi)
• French: péristaltisme (fr) m
• Galician: peristaltismo (gl) m
• German: Peristaltik (de) f
• Greek: περισταλτισμός (el) m (peristaltismós), περίσταλση (el) f (perístalsi), περισταλτικότητα (el) f (peristaltikótita)
• Hindi: क्रमाकुंचन m (kramākuñcan)
• Hungarian: perisztaltika (hu), gyomor- és bélmozgás
• Italian: peristalsi (it)
• Japanese: 蠕動 (ja) (ぜんどう, zendou)
• Maori: kotēpana
• Marathi: आंत्रचलन (āntraclan)
• Polish: perystaltyka (pl) f
• Portuguese: peristaltismo (pt) m, peristalse f
• Romanian: peristaltică (ro) f, peristaltism (ro) n
• Russian: периста́льтика (ru) f (peristálʹtika)
• Spanish: peristalsis (es) f
• Swedish: peristaltik (sv) c
• Tamil: சுற்றிழுப்பசைவு (cuṟṟiḻuppacaivu), சுற்றிழுப்பசைவு (cuṟṟiḻuppacaivu)
• Turkish: peristalti
• Ukrainian: перистальтика (perystalʹtyka)
• Vietnamese: sự nhu động

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /peɾisˈtalsis/ [pe.ɾisˈt̪al.sis]
• Rhymes: -alsis
• Syllabification: pe‧ris‧tal‧sis

Noun

peristalsis f (plural peristalsis)

1. peristalsis

Related terms

• antiperistáltico
• peristáltico

 

Further reading

• “peristalsis”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.7, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2023 November 28