Word of the Day

"aseptic"

DEFINITION

adjective

1a : preventing infection

b : free or freed from pathogenic microorganisms

2 : lacking vitality, emotion, or warmth

If something is aseptic it is sterile, sanitized, or otherwise clean of infectious organisms.

Hospitals make every effort to keep operating rooms aseptic so that patients don’t contract

infections after surgery.

Synonyms:

sterile

: antiseptic
thoroughly clean and free of or destructive to disease-causing organisms

EXAMPLES

Patients with compromised immune systems must be treated in aseptic environments.

"[The company's] innovative technology enables it to kill the bacteria that cause foods to go

bad and make people sick without ruining the flavor. Not only does that produce tastier,

more nutritious food but, by using aseptic packaging that is lighter and more space-efficient

than cans, the overall carbon footprint is reduced, [David] Kirkpatrick said." —

From an article by David Ranii in the News & Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina), May 3, 2013

In the end, I decided that I preferred research labs, where aseptic conditions are required.

Amenth's room was incredibly aseptic, barren of pictures, ash trays, dirty laundry,

any of the normal masculine debris.

Probably its germicidal power accounts for the aseptic character of the air of the Alps,

the desert and other places.

On the far side of the glass there was, obviously, an aseptic environment room now being

used as an isolation chamber.

These dislocations are frequently the result of machinery accidents, and being compound and

difficult to render aseptic, often necessitate amputation.

DID YOU KNOW?

Things cleaned specifically in a way that prevents infection were first described as

"aseptic" in the late 19th century. The word combines the prefix "a-," meaning "not,"

and "septic," from Greek "sēptikos," meaning "putrifying." "Aseptic" was preceded

by more than a century by "antiseptic" (from "anti-," meaning "opposing," and "sēptikos"),

which entered English with the meaning "opposing sepsis, putrefaction, or decay."
Both words can also be used, like "sterile," to suggest a lack of emotion, warmth,

or interest. Evelyn Toynton used "aseptic" thus in The New York Times Book Review,

November 22, 1987: "It's hard not to feel that an element of romance has been lost,

that the vast chilly reaches of outer space are a pretty aseptic substitute for the shadowy

depths under the ground.…"