[syn: blockage, closure, occlusion]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Occlusion \Oc*clu"sion\, n. [See Occlude.]
1. The act of occluding, or the state of being occluded.
[1913 Webster]
Constriction and occlusion of the orifice. --Howell.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Med.) The transient approximation of the edges of a
natural opening; imperforation. --Dunglison.
[1913 Webster]
Occlusion of gases (Chem. & Physics), the phenomenon of
absorbing gases, as exhibited by platinum, palladium,
iron, or charcoal; thus, palladium absorbs, or occludes,
nearly a thousand times its own volume of hydrogen, and in
this case a chemical compound seems to be formed.
[1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
occlusion
n 1: closure or blockage (as of a blood vessel)
2: (meteorology) a composite front when colder air surrounds a
mass of warm air and forces it aloft [syn: occluded front,
occlusion]
3: (dentistry) the normal spatial relation of the teeth when the
jaws are closed
4: an obstruction in a pipe or tube; "we had to call a plumber
to clear out the blockage in the drainpipe" [syn: blockage,
block, closure, occlusion, stop, stoppage]
5: the act of blocking [syn: blockage, closure, occlusion]