lactation

[ lak-tey-shuhn ]

/ lækˈteɪ ʃən /

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See synonyms for lactation on Thesaurus.com

noun

the secretion or formation of milk.

the period of milk production.

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Origin of lactation

1660–70; <Late Latin lactātiōn- (stem of lactātiō) a giving suck. See lactate¹, -ion

OTHER WORDS FROM lactation

lac·ta·tion·al, adjectivelac·ta·tion·al·ly, adverbhy·per·lac·ta·tion, nouno·ver·lac·ta·tion, noun

su·per·lac·ta·tion, noun

Words nearby lactation

lactarian, lactary, lactase, lactate, lactate dehydrogenase, lactation, lactation tetany, lacteal, lacteous, lactescent, lacti-

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use lactation in a sentence

In a country that does not guarantee mandatory paid leave after the birth or adoption of a child and where there is an intense pressure to breastfeed, lactation rooms have multiplied in the last decade.
The Invisible Labor Inside America's Lactation Rooms|Mathilde Cohen|May 7, 2021|Time
What does it mean when people are expected to breastfeed and yet to do it in secluded multi-user lactation rooms, like the Longworth House suite in the Capitol, often double as communal spaces, fostering a sense of camaraderie among new mothers.
The Invisible Labor Inside America's Lactation Rooms|Mathilde Cohen|May 7, 2021|Time
The title Milk Factory underlines that lactation is a form of labor, even if federal law conceptualizes it as a break from work, which employers are not required to compensate.
The Invisible Labor Inside America's Lactation Rooms|Mathilde Cohen|May 7, 2021|Time
From there, she traveled across the country to take pictures of lactation facilities in other workplaces, including a California farm, airports, various New York schools, and the Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women in Alabama.
The Invisible Labor Inside America's Lactation Rooms|Mathilde Cohen|May 7, 2021|Time

It also employs nurses, lactation consultants, and others who respond to messages and offer women advice or health screenings as issues come up.
Pregnant in the pandemic? It helps to have good Wi-Fi.|Cat Ferguson|December 14, 2020|MIT Technology Review
“The case for using pharmaceutical galactogogues [substances used to increase lactation] has grown weaker,” the report found.
Breastfeeding Pills’ Risky Results|Eliza Shapiro|August 7, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Certainly not in the same way that motherhood triggers contractions, lactation, and stretch marks.
Does Fatherhood Make You Healthy?|Anneli Rufus|September 29, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Long-continued lactation—that is, beyond the physiological limit of about nine months—is especially a frequent cause.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine|Austin Malley
Usually we may say this method fails of its purpose and pregnancy and lactation together work serious harm.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine|Austin Malley
Lactation is sometimes prolonged for no better reason than the hope to avoid pregnancy.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine|Austin Malley
In all probability she was infected during her last lactation.
Neuralgia and the Diseases that Resemble it|Francis E. Anstie
As lactation progresses, they become thickened to nearly twice the original diameter.
Aspects of Reproduction and Development in the Prairie Vole (Microtus ochrogaster)|Henry S. Fitch

British Dictionary definitions for lactation

lactation

/ (lækˈteɪʃən) /

noun

the secretion of milk from the mammary glands after parturition

the period during which milk is secreted

Derived forms of lactation

lactational, adjectivelactationally, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012