What does "hypostasis" mean?
A sedimentary deposit, especially in urine.
Hypostasis
/haɪˈpɑstəsɪs/ noun
noun ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A sedimentary deposit, especially in urine.
- Grammar: hypostasis is listed as noun.
- Nearest alternatives: subsistence, abstract noun, adherent noun, air.
- Useful contrasts: appearance, impersonality, phenomenon.
- Usage evidence: Phi[sitian]. I view’d your vrine, and the Hipoſtates ^([sic – meaning Hipoſtaſis]) / Thick and obſcure doth make your danger great, […]
How to use "hypostasis"
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- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "hypostasis" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
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- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
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- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "hypostasis" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "hypostasis" is acting as noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
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3. Confirm with context
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Final meaning check
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When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A sedimentary deposit, especially in urine. archaic, countable, uncountable
"Phi[sitian]. I view’d your vrine, and the Hipoſtates ^([sic – meaning Hipoſtaſis]) / Thick and obſcure doth make your danger great, […]"
- 2 (metaphysics) essential nature or underlying reality wordnet
- 3 The essential person, specifically the single person of Christ (as distinguished from his two ‘natures’, human and divine), or of the three ‘persons’ of the Trinity (sharing a single ‘essence’). countable, uncountable
"the hypostases of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit"
- 4 the accumulation of blood in an organ wordnet
- 5 The underlying reality or substance of something. countable, uncountable
"Rašnu, the "Judge", appears to be the hypostasis of the idea embodied in the common noun rašnu, "judging, one who judges"."
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 the suppression of a gene by the effect of an unrelated gene wordnet
- 7 The underlying reality or substance of something.; A relationship between a name and a known quantity, as a cultural personification (i.e. objectification with personality) of an entity or quality. countable, uncountable
- 8 The underlying reality or substance of something.; Referring to the hypostatic model of personality; i.e., asserting that humans present themselves in many different aspects or hypostases, depending on the internal and external realities they relate to, including different approaches to the study of personality. countable, uncountable
- 9 The effect of one gene preventing another from expressing. countable, uncountable
"When penetrance is suppressed altogether, the term ‘epistasis’ (and ‘hypostasis’ of the suppressed gene) is used."
- 10 Postmortem lividity; livor mortis; suggillation. countable, uncountable
"I am, of course, excluding the hypostasis produced by his having lain a whole week face downward in the cellar. That, naturally, is all in the front part of the body."
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Phi[sitian]. I view’d your vrine, and the Hipoſtates ^([sic – meaning Hipoſtaſis]) / Thick and obſcure doth make your danger great, […]"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "hypostasis"?
Common synonyms include: subsistence, abstract noun, adherent noun, air, atom, atomic particles.
How do you use "hypostasis" in a sentence?
Phi[sitian]. I view’d your vrine, and the Hipoſtates ^([sic – meaning Hipoſtaſis]) / Thick and obſcure doth make your danger great, […]
How do you pronounce "hypostasis"?
Pronounced /haɪˈpɑstəsɪs/.
Etymology
From Ecclesiastical Latin hypostasis, from Ancient Greek ὑπόστασις (hupóstasis, “sediment, foundation; substance, existence, essence”), from ὑπό (hupó, “under”) + στάσις (stásis, “standing”). Morphologically hypo- + -stasis.