word | assimilate |
---|---|
definition | (1) To take in and thoroughly understand. (2) To cause to become part of a different society or culture. |
eg_sentence | One of the traditional strengths of American society has been its ability to assimilate one group of immigrants after another. |
explanation | Assimilate comes from the Latin verb assimulare, “to make similar,” and it originally applied to the process by which food is taken into the body and absorbed into the system. In a similar way, a fact can be taken into the mind, thoroughly digested, and absorbed into one's store of knowledge. A newcomer to a job or a subject must assimilate an often confusing mass of information; only after it's been thoroughly absorbed can the person make intelligent use of it. An immigrant family assimilates into its new culture by gradually adopting a new language and the habits of their new neighbors—a process that's always easier for the children than for the parents |
IPA | əˈsɪməˌleɪt |
Tags: mwvb::unit:25, mwvb::unit:25:word, mwvb::word, mwvb::word-cloze, mwvb::word-reverse, obsidian_to_anki
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