What does meteorism mean?
Meteorism is a rare noun with two established uses. In medicine, it names abdominal distension produced by gas accumulated in the stomach or intestines. In historical spiritualist language, it referred to the claimed passage of meteors through a medium's body. The medical sense is the only one likely to occur in contemporary clinical writing, where the term is uncommon because more familiar expressions such as gaseous distension or flatulence are often preferred. The spiritualist sense belongs largely to nineteenth- and early twentieth-century accounts of alleged paranormal phenomena and should be treated as a description of a claim rather than evidence for it. Meteorism can also be confused with meteorology, the scientific study of atmospheric and celestial phenomena, and with a meteor, the luminous phenomenon produced when a celestial body enters an atmosphere. Its vocabulary value lies partly in recording how medical terminology and occult language once overlapped in descriptions of bodily processes.
nounIn medicine, meteorism is abdominal distension caused by gas accumulated in the stomach or intestines. In historical spiritualist usage, it referred to the claimed passage of meteors through a medium's body.
- Abdominal distension caused by the accumulation of gas in the stomach or intestines.
- The historical spiritualist claim that meteors passed through the body of a medium.
"The clinician attributed the patient's abdominal meteorism to intestinal gas."
"Severe abdominal meteorism made the patient's abdomen tense and distended."
"The medium's alleged meteorism was presented by contemporaries as evidence of supernatural power."
The plural is grammatically possible but rare; the term is normally used in the singular.
"Historical medical texts sometimes use the plural meteorisms when discussing separate cases."
Meteorism can mean abdominal gas—or, in historical spiritualism, meteors supposedly passing through a medium.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does meteorism come from?
Meteorism combines meteor with the suffix -ism, which forms a noun denoting a condition, phenomenon, or system. Meteor comes through French and Latin from Greek meteōros, meaning “raised high,” originally associated with celestial phenomena. The English term was used in both medical and spiritualist writing during the nineteenth century, with those senses reflecting the older language of bodily gases and supposed celestial influences.
How meteorism is actually used
Meteorism is rare in modern general English. Its medical sense is technical, while its spiritualist sense is historical and should be used to describe an alleged phenomenon rather than endorse it. It is not a standard term for a meteor shower.
Easily confused with meteorism
Meteorism is a rare term associated with gas-related abdominal distension or a historical spiritualist claim, whereas meteorology is the scientific study of atmospheric and celestial phenomena.
A meteor is the luminous phenomenon produced when a celestial body enters an atmosphere, while meteorism does not denote that phenomenon.