Impaction
/ɪmˈpæk.ʃən/noun
The act of becoming tightly wedged or packed together, especially in a body or mass.
Did you know?Impaction comes from Latin roots meaning “to strike against,” so the word’s history is literally about force meeting resistance—an ancient idea that still lives in medicine and mechanics.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
impingere
“to strike against, dash against”
Late Latin
Latin
impactus
“struck against, driven in”
Old French
Old French
impacter
“to impinge, strike into”
14th–16th Century
English
impaction
“a driving or striking in; later, a state of being tightly packed or wedged”
Modern English
English
impaction
“the condition of being tightly lodged or compacted, especially in the body”