saturation

noun

sat·​u·​ra·​tion ˌsa-chə-ˈrā-shən 

1

a

: the act of saturating : the state of being saturated

b

: satiety, surfeit

2

: conversion of an unsaturated to a saturated chemical compound (as by hydrogenation)

3

: a state of maximum impregnation: such as

a

: complete infiltration : permeation

b

: the presence in air of the most water possible under existent pressure and temperature

c

: magnetization to the point beyond which a further increase in the intensity of the magnetizing force will produce no further magnetization

4

a

: chromatic purity : freedom from dilution with white

b(1)

: degree of difference from the gray having the same lightness

—used of an object color

(2)

: degree of difference from the achromatic light-source color of the same brightness

—used of a light-source color compare hue sense 2c

5

: the supplying of a market with as much of a product as it will absorb

6

: an overwhelming concentration of military forces or firepower

Examples of saturation in a Sentence

Heavy rains resulted in the saturation of the soil.

the saturation of advertising on television

Recent Examples on the Web

Founders are faced with risk of market saturation and a challenging path to monetization especially in developing a moat around LLMs which are controlled by a few large organizations. —Hessie Jones, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024

Harris is of a newer generation of pols, not someone who has been in the public eye in a serious way to the point of saturation or necessarily beholden to decades of promises. —Philip Elliott, TIME, 30 Oct. 2024

The oximeter placed on his fingertip registered well above the 88% blood oxygen saturation level that signals an urgent risk of organ failure and death. —Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 18 Oct. 2024

The rule of seven suggests consumers need to encounter a brand seven times before taking action, though today’s digital saturation likely pushes this figure to 20 times or more, particularly in B2B and other industries with a long sales cycle. —Shanna Apitz, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1554, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing saturation

• saturation bombing
• saturation point

Kids Definition

saturation

noun

sat·​u·​ra·​tion ˌsach-ə-ˈrā-shən 

1

: the act or process of saturating

2

: the state of being saturated

Medical Definition

saturation

noun

sat·​u·​ra·​tion ˌsach-ə-ˈrā-shən 

1

: the act of saturating : the state of being saturated

2

: conversion of an unsaturated to a saturated chemical compound (as by hydrogenation)

3

: a state of maximum impregnation

especially : the presence in air of the most water possible under existent pressure and temperature

4

a

: the one of the three psychological dimensions of color perception that is related to the purity of the color and that decreases as the amount of white present in the stimulus increases

called also intensity

compare brightness, hue

b(1)

: degree of difference from the gray having the same lightness

—used of an object color

(2)

: degree of difference from the achromatic light-source color of the same brightness

—used of a light-source color