# consumption

Pronunciation: say "kuhn-SUMP-shuhn" /kənˈsʌmp.ʃən/

## Noun

1. The act of eating, drinking, or using something.
   - Simple: The eating, drinking, or using up of something.
   - _Nutritionists track the consumption of processed foods across different age groups._
   - _Moderate consumption of caffeine is considered safe for most adults._
2. The amount of something that is eaten, drunk, or used.
   - Simple: How much of something is eaten, drunk, or used.
   - _The new appliance cut the building's energy consumption by a third._
   - _Analysts compared regional water consumption before and after the drought._
3. The act of using something up or destroying it.
   - Simple: The using up or complete destroying of something.
   - _The wildfire's consumption of the hillside left only blackened stumps behind._
   - _Economists warn that the consumption of fossil fuels is outpacing discovery._
4. The progressive wasting away of the human body as a result of disease.
   - Simple: The slow wasting away of the body because of illness.
   - _Late-stage cancer often brings a relentless consumption of the body's reserves._
   - _Nurses documented the steady consumption that accompanied his chronic illness._

## Noun

5. A former name for tuberculosis and related wasting diseases marked by lung infection and progressive physical decline. *(dated)*
   - Simple: An old name for tuberculosis, a serious lung illness that makes the body waste away.
   - _Physicians often sent patients with consumption to dry mountain climates in hope of recovery._
   - _Whole families were carried off by consumption in the crowded mill towns._
6. A former term for the bodily decline and death brought about by chronic alcoholism. *(dated)*
   - Simple: An old word for dying slowly because of years of heavy drinking.
   - _The obituary discreetly noted consumption rather than name his lifelong habit._
   - _Neighbors whispered that consumption had taken the innkeeper, worn out by years at the bottle._

## Origin

This word came into Middle English as consumpcioun from Old French consumpcion, which came from Latin cōnsūmptiō. That Latin noun was formed from cōnsūmō ("take; consume"), itself made up of con- ("with, together") and sūmō ("take"). It is equivalent to consume plus -tion.

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