as·sim·i·la·tion (ə-sĭm'ə-lā'shən)
- The act or process of assimilating.
- The state of being assimilated.
- Physiology. The conversion of nutriments into living tissue; constructive metabolism.
- Linguistics. The process by which a sound is modified so that it becomes similar or identical to an adjacent or nearby sound. For example, the prefix in- becomes im- in impossible by assimilation to the labial p of possible.
- The process whereby a minority group gradually adopts the customs and attitudes of the prevailing culture.
