Meaning & use

Ossified

adjective·Advanced

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Having become rigid, fixed, or set in a conventional pattern, or, literally, turned into bone.

See it in a sentence

His once-flexible political views had ossified into stubborn dogma over the decades.

The cartilage in the joint gradually ossified as the patient aged.

A note on using this word

The literal biological sense (bone formation) gave rise to a common figurative use describing ideas or institutions that have become inflexible.

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