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induction

noun in·duc·tion \in-ˈdək-shən\

: the formal act or process of placing someone into a new job, position, government office, etc.

: the formal act of making someone a member of the military

medical : the act of giving a pregnant woman special drugs so that she will give birth

Full Definition of INDUCTION

a : the act or process of inducting (as into office)

b : an initial experience : initiation

c : the formality by which a civilian is inducted into military service

a (1) : inference of a generalized conclusion from particular instances — compare deduction 2a (2) : a conclusion arrived at by induction

b : mathematical demonstration of the validity of a law concerning all the positive integers by proving that it holds for the integer 1 and that if it holds for an arbitrarily chosen positive integer k, it must hold for the integer k + 1 —called also mathematical induction

: a preface, prologue, or introductory scene especially of an early English play

a : the act of bringing forward or adducing (as facts or particulars)

b : the act of causing or bringing on or about

c : the process by which an electrical conductor becomes electrified when near a charged body, by which a magnetizable body becomes magnetized when in a magnetic field or in the magnetic flux set up by a magnetomotive force, or by which an electromotive force is produced in a circuit by varying the magnetic field linked with the circuit

d : the inspiration of the fuel-air charge from the carburetor into the combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine

e : the process by which the fate of embryonic cells is determined (as by the action of adjacent cells) and morphogenetic differentiation brought about

See induction defined for English-language learners

See induction defined for kids

First Known Use of INDUCTION

14th century

Related to INDUCTION

Synonyms: baptism, inaugural, inauguration, installation, initiation, installment (also instalment), investiture, investment

Other Logic Terms

a posteriori, connotation, corollary, inference, mutually exclusive, paradox, postulate, syllogism

Rhymes with INDUCTION

abduction, adduction, conduction, construction, deduction, destruction, eduction, effluxion, instruction, obstruction, production, reduction, seduction, subduction, transduction

INDUCTION Defined for Kids

induction

noun in·duc·tion \in-ˈdək-shən\

Definition of INDUCTION for Kids

: the act or process of placing someone in a new job or position <induction into the Hall of Fame>

: the production of an electrical or magnetic effect through the influence of a nearby magnet, electrical current, or electrically charged body

Medical Dictionary

induction

noun in·duc·tion \in-ˈdək-shən\

Medical Definition of INDUCTION

: the act of causing or bringing on or about <induction of labor>; specifically : the establishment of the initial state of anesthesia often with an agent other than that used subsequently to maintain the anesthetic state

: the process by which an electrical conductor becomes electrified when near a charged body, by which a magnetizable body becomes magnetized when in a magnetic field or in the magnetic flux set up by a magnetomotive force, or by which an electromotive force is produced in a circuit by varying the magnetic field linked with the circuit

a : arousal of a part or area (as of the retina) by stimulation of an adjacent part or area b : the process by which the fate of embryonic cells is determined (as by the action of adjacent cells) and morphogenetic differentiation brought about

—in·duct \in-ˈdəkt\ transitive verb