Standard Lemma guide

atelectasis

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • /æ.tɪˈlɛk.tə.sɪs/
  • UK: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɛktəsɪs

1

noun

Meaning 1

The collapse of a part of or the whole lung caused by inner factors rather than a pneumothorax.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

collapse of an expanded lung (especially in infants); also failure of pulmonary alveoli to expand at birth

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: pathology

History

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἀτελής (atelḗs, “incomplete”) + ἔκτασις (éktasis, “extension”), from ἐκτείνω (ekteínō, “to extend”). By surface analysis, atel- + ectasis.

Across languages

Translations

7 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: atelèctasi — lung collapse caused by inner factors
  • Hebrew: תֶּמֶט הָרֵאָה — lung collapse caused by inner factors
  • Hebrew: תֶּמֶט — lung collapse caused by inner factors
  • Italian: atelectasia — lung collapse caused by inner factors
  • Polish: niedodma — lung collapse caused by inner factors
  • Portuguese: atelectasia — lung collapse caused by inner factors
  • Spanish: atelectasia — lung collapse caused by inner factors