Definition

1. Noun:
   • The reflex act of ejecting the contents of the stomach through the mouth: The involuntary or voluntary act of bringing swallowed food or liquid back up from the stomach to the mouth.
   • The mechanical act of bringing something back up or out: The process of something flowing or being brought back in the direction it came from.
   • The act of repeating information without understanding or thought: The reproduction of learned facts or ideas, often in a mechanical, rote manner without critical analysis.

Examples of Usage

• Medical/Biological Context:
  • The baby's frequent regurgitation is a common concern for new parents.
  • A common symptom of the condition is acid regurgitation.
• Mechanical/Flow Context:
  • The engineer diagnosed a problem with fluid regurgitation in the valve.
• Educational/Cognitive Context:
  • The exam encouraged critical thinking, not just the regurgitation of textbook facts.
  • His speech was a mere regurgitation of the party's talking points.

Advanced Usage

• "Regurgitation of information": A common collocation criticizing a learning or communication style that prioritizes memorization over comprehension.
  • The old teaching method led to the passive regurgitation of information.
• In ornithology, "regurgitation" describes how some birds feed their young by bringing up food from their crop.

Variants and Related Words

• Regurgitate (verb): To bring (swallowed food) up again to the mouth; to repeat (information) without understanding.
  • The bird will regurgitate food for its chicks.
  • He can regurgitate dates but cannot explain their historical significance.

Synonyms

• Vomiting, Emesis (for the medical act).
• Repetition, Parroting, Rote repetition (for the cognitive act).
• Backflow, Reflux (for the mechanical act).

Related Phrases

• "Regurgitate facts": To repeat facts mechanically.
  • Some students simply regurgitate facts for the test and forget them afterward.
• "Regurgitative learning": (Adjectival form) Describing a learning process based on memorization without understanding.

Noun

1. the reflex act of ejecting the contents of the stomach through the mouth
2. recall after rote memorization
   • he complained that school was just memorization and regurgitation
3. backflow of blood through a defective heart valve