abscission

  1. Noun.  The act or process of cutting off.
  2. Noun.  The state of being cut off. - Sir T. Browne.
  3. Noun.  (rhetoric) A figure of speech employed when a speaker having begun to say a thing stops abruptly.
  4. Noun.  (botany) The separation of a part at a predetermined location, such as a leaf at the base of the petiole.

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This entry was last updated on RefTopia from its source on 3/20/2012.