noun
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the act or an instance of migrating
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a group of people, birds, etc, migrating in a body
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chem a movement of atoms, ions, or molecules, such as the motion of ions in solution under the influence of electric fields
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The seasonal movement of a complete population of animals from one area to another. Migration is usually a response to changes in temperature, food supply, or the amount of daylight, and is often undertaken for the purpose of breeding. Mammals, insects, fish, and birds all migrate. The precise mechanism of navigation during migration is not fully understood, although for birds it is believed that sharp eyesight, sensibility to the Earth's magnetic field, and the positions of the Sun and other stars may play a role.
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The movement of one atom or more, or of a double bond, from one position to another within a molecule.
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The movement of ions between electrodes during electrolysis.
Other Word Forms
- migrational adjective
- nonmigration noun
- premigration adjective
- remigration noun
Etymology
Origin of migration
First recorded in 1605–15, migration is from the Latin word migrātīon- (stem of migrātiō ). See migrate, -ion
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
NAIROBI—A Kenyan court dismissed a lawsuit by a Maasai leader who sought to demolish a Ritz-Carlton luxury safari camp, alleging it blocked a key route of the famous Serengeti migration.
Although such alignments are unlikely at any given moment, Titan's outward migration sometimes creates these resonances.
From Science Daily
But over hundreds of millennia, human migrations resulted in interbreeding, researchers say.
From Barron's
Robinson has organized large rallies in the U.K. opposing migration.
Holidays were frivolous and silly, whereas a migration sounded much more serious and responsible, befitting a puffin of the military class.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
