INBDE Bootcamp Fields of Dentistry Practice Test

Imbibition is the uptake of water by a material that causes it to swell. This happens when a dry, hydrophilic substance—like seeds, plant tissues, or certain porous polymers—absorbs water into its capillary spaces and polymer network, leading to expansion. It’s a specific kind of water absorption where the swelling is an integral outcome of the water binding to the matrix.

Absorption is a broad term for taking in liquids and doesn’t by itself imply swelling. Diffusion describes how molecules spread from areas of high concentration to low concentration and doesn’t inherently involve swelling of the material. Osmosis refers to water moving across a semipermeable membrane due to solute differences, not general swelling of a dry matrix. Therefore, the term that best describes water uptake causing swelling is imbibition.