impaction

Meanings

Plural: impactions

Noun

• the condition of being pressed closely together and firmly fixed
• a disorder in which feces are impacted in the lower colon
• a disorder in which a tooth is so crowded in its socket that it cannot erupt normally
• a sharp collision produced by striking or dashing against something
• Compression; the packing together of loose matter.
• something packed together tightly; a mass of densely-packed matter
• A solid, immobile bulk of stool.
• Failure of a tooth to erupt into the dental arch, because of adjacent teeth, dense overlying bone, excessive soft tissue, or other factor.
• The situation where an educational institute, usually a college or university, receives more applications from qualified applicants than the number of spaces available, meaning that meeting the minimum admission requirements does not guarantee acceptance.

Synonyms

impacted tooth, impingement