What does osmotic mean?
Osmotic is an adjective relating to osmosis, the net movement of solvent across a selectively permeable membrane toward the side containing the higher concentration of dissolved solute. The term is especially common in biology, chemistry, medicine, and food science, where osmotic pressure, osmotic gradients, and osmotic balance describe forces and differences that determine the movement of water. In living cells, osmotic conditions influence how cells gain or lose water and maintain their internal balance. The word is also used of solutions, membranes, and experimental processes. Although osmosis describes a particular kind of solvent movement, osmotic is not simply a general synonym for diffusion: its defining feature is the membrane and the concentration difference involved.
adjectiveOf or relating to osmosis, the movement of a solvent across a selectively permeable membrane from a region of lower solute concentration to one of higher concentration. In particular, it describes the pressure or gradient involved in this process.
- Relating to or involving osmosis.
- Characterized by the movement of solvent across a selectively permeable membrane, especially when driven by differences in solute concentration.
"The osmotic pressure of the solution increased as more salt was added."
"The roots developed a strong osmotic gradient, allowing them to absorb water from the soil."
"The researcher measured the osmotic pressure of the plant cells under changing salt concentrations."
Osmotic pressure helps explain how plants draw water from soil and how many cells regulate the movement of water into and out of themselves.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of osmotic
The word derives from the Greek osmē, meaning a push or impulse, through the scientific term osmosis. The related English noun osmosis was established in the 19th century in the study of diffusion across membranes. The suffix -otic is an adjectival formation meaning relating to, so osmotic originally and primarily denotes something pertaining to this process.
Related word forms
How osmotic is actually used
Osmotic is primarily used in scientific and technical contexts, especially biology, chemistry, medicine, and food science. It is usually applied to a process, pressure, gradient, balance, or concentration rather than used as a general synonym for diffusion.
Easily confused with osmotic
Osmosis is the process by which solvent moves across a selectively permeable membrane, while osmotic is an adjective describing that process or its associated pressure, gradient, or flow.