etiolationn.
/ˌiːtɪə(ʊ)ˈleɪʃn/, U.S. /ˌidiəˈleɪʃən/ 1. Botany and Horticulture. The process or phenomenon by which a plant becomes etiolated; (also) the state or condition of being etiolated (etiolated adj. 1).
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > state or mode of having colour > absence of colour > [noun] > loss of colour
discoloura1398
palingc1450
discolouration1545
discolouredness1585
discolouring1598
decoloration1623
etiolation1784
discolourment1821
pallescence1822
discolorization1827
lightening1839
decolorizing1861
decolorization1871
1784 New Rev. Jan. 19 Aquatic plants are as subject to the etiolation as others.
1799 H. Davy in T. Beddoes Contrib. Physical & Med. Knowl. 188 Plants, in the process of etiolation, lose the light combined with their leaves, and become white.
1816 P. Keith Syst. Physiol. Bot. II. 498 Etiolation may also ensue from the depredation of insects.
1882 S. H. Vines tr. J. von Sachs Text-bk. Bot. (ed. 2) 754 It is remarkable that etiolation does not extend to the flowers.
1907 F. E. Clements Plant Physiol. & Ecol. iv. 81 Etiolation affects not only the color of the plant, but its form and structure as well. Stems usually become thin and elongated, and their branching is reduced.
1960 K. Esau Anat. Seed Plants viii. 93 On the contrary, if elongation is stimulated, as for example by etiolation, more than the usual number of elements with annular and helical thickening will be present.
1983 New Scientist 16 June 765/1 Such modifications may include..production of fewer branches and flowers, or the characteristic elongation of stems (termed aetiolation) seen in plants receiving insufficient light.
2006 D. Bassett & S. Bassett Dephiniums vii. 111/1 As soon as five or more seedlings have emerged, remove the foil cover and move the container into good light to avoid etiolation.
2. The process by which a person is made pale or physically weak, or a thing deprived of vigour or effectiveness. Also: the state or condition of being etiolated in this way. Cf. etiolate v. 3, 2.
ΚΠ
1831 J. Johnson Change of Air i. 9 Different people entertain different ideas respecting etiolation. The..fashionable mother would as soon see green celery on her table as brown health on the cheek of her daughter.
1845 T. Carlyle in O. Cromwell Lett. & Speeches I. 17 This is the collapse,—the etiolation of human features into mouldy blank.
1879 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 1 Nov. 712/2 In a room lighted with gas, one feels a sense of suffocation; pulmonary affections are developed; and etiolation is also one of the results.
1940 Musical Times Sept. 368/2 The three-part harmony in the new interval-signal..seems to give a slight feeling of etiolation, in the opinion of some laymen.
1985 Times 26 June 12/1 Osbourne's continuing tenure is the more ironic since it is he who has presided over the etiolation of the department.
2011 T. Sheehan Doctored iii. 90 Confronted with the effects of widespread etiolation, they expressed growing concern that popular notions of whiteness as an unfailing index of physical fitness were becoming mere fantasies.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2014; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1784