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Definition of "endothermic" [en•do•ther•mic]

  • Chemistry Characterized by or causing the absorption of heat; endoergic. (adjective)
  • Biology Of or relating to an organism that generates heat to maintain its body temperature, typically above the temperature of its surroundings; warm-blooded. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "endothermic" in a sentence
  • "II., where the meaning of the expression endothermic is explained."
  • "Compounds are therefore of two kinds: those which absorb heat during their preparation, and consequently liberate heat when they are decomposed -- such being termed endothermic; and those which evolve heat during their preparation, and consequently absorb heat when they are decomposed -- such being called exothermic."
  • "Let them contract again and, in a socalled endothermic reaction, they cool down."