Meaning & use
hydration
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Meanings
noununcountable
The state of having enough water in your body, or the act of drinking to achieve that.
Grammar: No plural and no an or an: proper hydration.
Patterns
- stay hydrated
- hydration during something
- a lack of hydration
Proper hydration is important for athletes who train in hot weather.
The nurse reminded him that hydration helps the body recover from illness.
Poor hydration can cause headaches and tiredness.
noununcountable
The process of adding water to skin, hair, or another material to keep it soft and healthy.
Grammar: Common in beauty and care products: skin hydration.
Patterns
- hydration for the skin
- a boost of hydration
This lotion gives dry hands extra hydration through the winter.
The spa offered a facial that focuses on deep hydration.
Dry, cracked soil needs hydration before seeds will sprout.
noununcountablechemistrytechnical
The chemical process in which water molecules combine with another substance.
Grammar: Used in chemistry and geology: the hydration of cement.
Patterns
- the hydration of something
The hydration of cement is what makes concrete harden.
Hydration of the salt crystals changed their color.
Chemists measured the heat released during hydration.
Common combinations
- proper hydration
- Proper hydration helps you stay alert.
- stay hydrated
- Remember to stay hydrated on the long hike.
- hydration pack
- She carries a hydration pack on her bike rides.
- skin hydration
- The cream improves skin hydration for up to a day.
- adequate hydration
- Adequate hydration is vital for children in hot climates.
- oral hydration
- Oral hydration with clean water and salts is a simple treatment for diarrhea.
Synonyms and how they differ
- moisture
- Moisture is a small amount of water in air, skin, or soil, while hydration focuses on the water balance a body or material needs.
- fluid intake
- Fluid intake counts how much someone drinks, whereas hydration describes the resulting water level in the body.
- moisturizing
- Moisturizing is the act of adding moisture to skin, a narrower use than hydration.
Opposites
Word family
- hydrate verb
- to supply water, or to drink enough water
- hydrated adjective
- having enough water
- dehydration noun
- a harmful loss of water from the body
- rehydrate verb
- to add water again after it has been lost
- hydrator noun
- a product or device that adds moisture
Commonly confused: hydration or dehydration? hydration or hydraulic?
hydration vs dehydration
Dehydration is the opposite of hydration: the loss of too much body water.
hydration vs hydraulic
Hydraulic means operated by fluid pressure, as in a hydraulic jack, and is unrelated to drinking enough water.
Practice
After a long run in the heat, the coach reminded the team about the importance of ______.
Choose one answer.
Hydration means keeping enough water in the body, which is what a coach would stress after exercise. Dehydration is the problem to avoid, and the others do not fit.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hydration”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.