# absorbing

Pronunciation: US say "ab-ZOR-bing" /æbˈzɔɹ.bɪŋ/; UK say "uhb-ZAW-bing" /əbˈzɔː.bɪŋ/

## Verb

1. Present participle and gerund of absorb. — present participle and gerund of absorb
   - Simple: Present participle and gerund of absorb. Use this form for an action happening right now or as a noun naming the action.
   - _The thick soil is absorbing the rainfall faster than it can pool._
   - _Absorbing the costs of the recall hurt the company's quarterly profits._

## Adjective

2. So engrossing that it holds someone's attention completely and sustains their interest.
   - Simple: So interesting that you do not want to stop reading, watching, or doing it.
   - _The novel proved absorbing enough to keep her reading past midnight._
   - _He gave an absorbing lecture that held the whole room's attention._
3. Letting a process enter but never leave, so once it is reached the process cannot be exited.
   - Simple: Letting something come in but never letting it back out.
   - _An absorbing state in the model retains every process that reaches it._
   - _Once the chain enters an absorbing condition, it remains there permanently._

## Origin

Formed from the verb "absorb" combined with the suffix "-ing".

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/absorbing (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).