RETARDATION

Pronunciation (US):

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does retardation mean? 

• RETARDATION (noun)
  The noun RETARDATION has 5 senses:

1. a decrease in rate of change

2. the extent to which something is delayed or held back

3. any agent that retards or delays or hinders

4. lack of normal development of intellectual capacities

5. the act of slowing down or falling behind

  Familiarity information: RETARDATION used as a noun is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• RETARDATION (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A decrease in rate of change

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

deceleration; retardation; slowing

Context example:

the deceleration of the arms race

Hypernyms ("retardation" is a kind of...):

alteration; change; modification (an event that occurs when something passes from one state or phase to another)

Derivation:

retard (lose velocity; move more slowly)

retard (be delayed)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The extent to which something is delayed or held back

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Hypernyms ("retardation" is a kind of...):

delay; hold; postponement; time lag; wait (time during which some action is awaited)

Derivation:

retard (be delayed)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Any agent that retards or delays or hinders

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Synonyms:

retardant; retardation; retardent

Context example:

flame-retardant

Hypernyms ("retardation" is a kind of...):

agent (an active and efficient cause; capable of producing a certain effect)

Derivation:

retard (cause to move more slowly or operate at a slower rate)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Lack of normal development of intellectual capacities

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

backwardness; mental retardation; retardation; slowness; subnormality

Hypernyms ("retardation" is a kind of...):

stupidity (a poor ability to understand or to profit from experience)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "retardation"):

abnormality; mental defectiveness (retardation sufficient to fall outside the normal range of intelligence)

mental deficiency; moronity (mild mental retardation)

amentia; idiocy (extreme mental retardation)

imbecility (retardation more severe than a moron but not as severe as an idiot)

Derivation:

retard (slow the growth or development of)

Sense 5

Meaning:

The act of slowing down or falling behind

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

lag; retardation; slowdown

Hypernyms ("retardation" is a kind of...):

delay; holdup (the act of delaying; inactivity resulting in something being put off until a later time)

Derivation:

retard (lose velocity; move more slowly)

retard (be delayed)

 Context examples 

It is characterized by marked growth retardation and abnormalities in multiple organs including heart, liver, muscle, eyes, and brain.

(Mulibrey Nanism, NCI Thesaurus)

Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale-A (BPRS-A) Motor retardation.

(BPRS-A - Motor Retardation, NCI Thesaurus)

Characteristics include profound mental retardation and severe malformations.

(Complete Trisomy 18 Syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

The clinical course includes developmental delays in motor skills and speech with associated moderate mental retardation.

(Coffin-Siris Syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

A genetic condition characterized by short stature, premature aging, sensitivity to light, and possibly deafness and mental retardation.

(Cockayne syndrome, NCI Dictionary)

The neuronal migration defects result in brain abnormalities that are usually manifested with mental retardation and epilepsy.

(Neuronal Migration Disorder, NCI Thesaurus)

A rare syndrome characterized by low birth weight, delayed growth, mental retardation, behavioral problems, and a distinctive facial appearance (thin, arched eyebrows, low set ears, small teeth, and small nose).

(Cornelia De Lange Syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

It is characterized by mental retardation, developmental delay, microcephaly, short stature and kyphoscoliosis.

(Coffin-Lowry Syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

It is characterized by developmental delay, mental retardation, loose skin folds, cardiomyopathy, tachycardia, and structural heart defects.

(Costello syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

Signs and symptoms include organomegaly, mental retardation, abnormal skeletal development, heart disorders, hearing loss, and central nervous system deficiencies.

(Mucopolysaccharidosis, NCI Thesaurus)