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ABSENCE
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I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Failure to be present
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("absence" is a kind of...):
nonattendance (the failure to attend)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "absence"):
cut (an unexcused absence from class)
default (loss due to not showing up)
absenteeism (habitual absence from work)
Antonym:
presence (the act of being present)
Derivation:
absent (go away or leave)
absent (not being in a specified place)
Sense 2
Meaning:
The state of being absent
Example:
he was surprised by the absence of any explanation
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Hypernyms ("absence" is a kind of...):
deficiency; lack; want (the state of needing something that is absent or unavailable)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "absence"):
nonoccurrence (absence by virtue of not occurring)
awayness (the state of being elsewhere than in particular place)
Antonym:
presence (the state of being present; current existence)
Derivation:
absent (not being in a specified place)
Sense 3
Meaning:
The occurrence of an abrupt, transient loss or impairment of consciousness (which is not subsequently remembered), sometimes with light twitching, fluttering eyelids, etc.; common in petit mal epilepsy
Synonyms:
absence; absence seizure
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Hypernyms ("absence" is a kind of...):
ictus; raptus; seizure (a sudden occurrence (or recurrence) of a disease)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "absence"):
complex absence (an absence seizure accompanied by other abnormalities (atonia or automatisms or vasomotor changes))
pure absence; simple absence (an absence seizure without other complications; followed by 3-per-sec brainwave spikes)
subclinical absence (a transient impairment of cortical function demonstrable only by 3-per-second brainwave spikes)
Holonyms ("absence" is a part of...):
epilepsia minor; petit mal; petit mal epilepsy (epilepsy characterized by paroxysmal attacks of brief clouding of consciousness (and possibly other abnormalities))
Sense 4
Meaning:
The time interval during which something or somebody is away
Example:
he visited during my absence
Classified under:
Nouns denoting time and temporal relations
Hypernyms ("absence" is a kind of...):
interval; time interval (a definite length of time marked off by two instants)
Context examples:
The prognosis depends on the completeness of the surgical resection, the number of lymph nodes involved by cancer, and the presence or absence of postoperative complications.
(Adenocarcinoma of the Gastroesophageal Junction, NCI Thesaurus)
A leukemia characterised by the absence of leukemic cells in the peripheral blood. — 2003
(Aleukemic Leukemia, NCI Thesaurus)
In the absence of Wnt signaling, GSK3 is active and phosphorylates b-catenin resulting in its degradation by ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis.
(ALK Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)
A congenital malformation characterized by the complete absence of all limbs.
(Amelia, NCI Thesaurus)
A kind fairy, in my absence, had surely dropped the required suggestion on my pillow; for as I lay down, it came quietly and naturally to my mind.
(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)
A melanoma characterized by the complete absence of melanin pigment in the melanoma cells.
(Amelanotic melanoma, NCI Thesaurus)
He was invited again to Camden Place the very evening of his return; but from Thursday to Saturday evening his absence was certain.
(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)
A rare neural tube defect during pregnancy, resulting in the absence of a large portion of the brain and skull in the fetus.
(Anencephaly, NCI Thesaurus)
Scientists have discovered that the absence of a specific protein in cells lining the esophagus may cause inflammation and tissue damage in people with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE).
(Eosinophilic esophagitis may be due to missing protein, National Institutes of Health)
A chemical process that does not require oxygen or occurs in the absence of oxygen.
(Anaerobic, NCI Thesaurus)
