assimilation

Noun

• in the theories of Jean Piaget: the application of a general schema to a particular instance

• the process of assimilating new ideas into an existing cognitive structure

• a linguistic process by which a sound becomes similar to an adjacent sound

• the process of absorbing nutrients into the body after digestion

• the social process of absorbing one cultural group into harmony with another

• the state of being assimilated; people of different backgrounds come to see themselves as part of a larger national family

Related words

• Synonyms: 
  acculturation , absorption