Meaning & use
physiological adaptation
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountablebiology
A change in how the body's internal processes work that helps a living thing survive in its environment, either over generations or within one lifetime.
Grammar: Countable: one physiological adaptation, many physiological adaptations.
Patterns
- a physiological adaptation to something
Producing more red blood cells is a physiological adaptation to high altitude.
Camels have a physiological adaptation that lets them survive long without water.
Antifreeze proteins in fish blood are a physiological adaptation to polar seas.
Word forms
| plural | physiological adaptations |
|---|
Common combinations
- physiological adaptation to
- Thicker blood is a physiological adaptation to thin mountain air.
- develop a physiological adaptation
- Desert mice develop a physiological adaptation for saving water.
- example of physiological adaptation
- Hibernation is an example of physiological adaptation.
- physiological adaptation to cold
- Shivering is a physiological adaptation to cold.
- evolutionary physiological adaptation
- The venom is an evolutionary physiological adaptation.
Synonyms and how they differ
- acclimatization
- Acclimatization is a temporary adjustment within one lifetime, while a physiological adaptation can also be genetic and inherited.
- metabolic adaptation
- This names changes in energy processing only, so it is narrower.
- internal adaptation
- A plain phrase that is less precise and not used in textbooks.
Opposites
Word family
- adapt verb
- to change to suit new conditions
- adaptation noun
- a change that helps survival
- physiology noun
- the science of how bodies work
- physiological adjective
- relating to body processes
Commonly confused: physiological adaptation or psychological? physiological adaptation or structural adaptation?
physiological adaptation vs psychological
Psychological relates to the mind, while physiological relates to bodily functions.
physiological adaptation vs structural adaptation
A structural adaptation is a physical feature such as a thick fur coat, whereas a physiological one is an internal process.
Practice
Which is a physiological adaptation?
Choose one answer.
Sweating is an internal process of the body. Migrating and web-building are behaviors, and fur is a structure.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “physiological adaptation”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.