Pigmentation Meaning
/pˌɪɡməˈnteɪʃən/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounColoration of human, plant or animal tissue, especially by pigment.
Sentence Examples
The unusual pigmentation of her skin was due to a rare condition.
Some animals can change their pigmentation to blend in.
Melanin is responsible for the dark pigmentation of skin.
CEFR Practice Quiz
Exposure to the sun increases skin ____, causing it to become darker.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The doctor noted unusual ____ on the patient's skin and referred her to a dermatologist.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree English pigment Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Indo-European *-Hō Proto-Indo-European *-tiHō Proto-Italic *-tiō Latin -tiō Latin -ātiōlbor. Old French -ationbor. Middle English -acioun English -ation English pigmentation From pigment + -ation.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"It may hence be assumed that this apparently capillary pigmentation should be ascribed merely to an accumulation of pigment-molecules towards one side of the hepatic cells."
— 1855, Carl Wedl, Rudiments of Pathological Histology:
"The neoplasm which, since the time of Laennec, is known by the designation Melanosis, is to be carefully distinguished from this pigmentation of the ordinary structures of the lung, which has been designated Anthracosis."
— 1858, Rudolf Virchow, “The Pathology of Miners' Lung”, in Edinburgh Medical Journal, volume 4, page 205:
"In order to help understand the pigmentary changes which occur throughout the aging process and in the management of aging skin, it is necessary to examine how pigmentation varies among different ethnicities."
— 2009, Miranda A. Farage, Textbook of Aging Skin, page 503:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
Exposure to the sun increases skin ____, causing it to become darker.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The doctor noted unusual ____ on the patient's skin and referred her to a dermatologist.