constipation

noun

Etymology: First attested in the beginning of the 15ᵗʰ century, in Middle English; inherited from Middle English constipacioun, borrowed from Medieval Latin constīpātiō or its Old French equivalent, from cōnstīpō + -tiō. By surface analysis, constipate + -ion.

1. A state of the bowels in which the evacuations are infrequent and difficult, or the intestines become filled with hardened faeces.

   “If you also knew how to combine foods—that is, what foods eaten together “set well,” you need never have indigestion, constipation or any of the headachy, stomachachy ills they lead to.”

   “Review of systems was positive for unintentional weight gain of 13.5 kilograms in the last eight months, excessive fatigue, fever, difficulty focusing, one episode of painful oral ulcer on the roof of her mouth, change in the hair texture with nonscarring alopecia, shortness of breath with exertion, and constipation.”

2. The act of crowding anything into a lesser space, or the state of being crowded or pressed together; condensation.