1. The social process of absorbing one cultural group into harmony with another
   "The assimilation of immigrants into the local culture took place over several generations";
   - absorption
    
2. The state of being assimilated; people of different backgrounds come to see themselves as part of a larger national family
   "The country's policy of assimilation aimed to create a unified national identity"
    
3. The process of assimilating new ideas into an existing cognitive structure
   "The student's assimilation of complex scientific theories took time";
   - acculturation
    
4. The process of absorbing nutrients into the body after digestion
   "Proper assimilation of vitamins is essential for maintaining good health";
   - absorption
    
5. A linguistic process by which a sound becomes similar to an adjacent sound
   "The assimilation of the prefix 'in-' to 'im-' before words starting with 'p' in English"
    
6. In the theories of Jean Piaget: the application of a general schema to a particular instance
   "The student's assimilation of the new maths concept into her existing knowledge"

Derived forms: assimilations

Type of: biological process, developmental learning, education, linguistic process, organic process, relationship, social process

Encyclopedia: Assimilation