Definition of "contractility" [con•trac•til•i•ty]

• The condition of being able to contract or shrink (used especially of muscles) (noun)
• The extent to which something contracts or shrinks (noun)
• A term used in physiology to describe the performance of cardiac muscle (noun)

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• "When the muscles are put into action, what is termed their contractility is called into play — that is, the force which was dormant before is roused into activity."
• "When the muscles are put into action, what is termed their contractility is called into play -- that is, the force which was dormant before is roused into activity."
• "They possessed indeed properties, such as contractility, which were not inorganic, but as far as their visible structure was concerned there was little to raise them above the inorganic level."