extinction

== English == === Etymology === From late Middle English, borrowed from Latin extinctio (“extinction, annihilation”), from extinguere, past participle extinctus (“to extinguish”); see extinguish. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ɪkˈstɪŋkʃən/ === Noun === extinction (countable and uncountable, plural extinctions) The action of making or becoming extinct; annihilation. (astronomy) The absorption or scattering of electromagnetic radiation emitted by astronomical objects by intervening dust and gas before it reaches the observer. (pathology) The inability to perceive multiple stimuli simultaneously. (psychology) The fading of a conditioned response over time if it is not reinforced. ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Related terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === References === “extinction”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC. William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “extinction”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC. === Anagrams === ctenitoxin == French == === Etymology === Borrowed from Latin extinctiōnem. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ɛk.stɛ̃k.sjɔ̃/, /ɛks.tɛ̃k.sjɔ̃/ Hyphenation: ex‧tinc‧tion === Noun === extinction f (plural extinctions) extinction ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Related terms ==== === Further reading === “extinction”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012