alimento-, aliment-

1. Something that sustains a body; nourishment: Jane had to go to the grocery store in order to by some food, or aliments.
2. In Scotland, alimony: After Jack and Jill got divorced, Jack had to pay his ex-wife an aliment which the court of law ordered.

1. Concerning food, nourishment, and the organs of digestion: For lunch Alice had a bowl of vegetable soup and a wholewheat sandwich, which was all very alimentary
2. Providing food or nourishment: The picnic that Jane prepared was filled with lots of alimentary and nutritional products, like tomatoes, grapes, oranges, and whole grain sandwiches, and, in addition, some non-alimentary goodies, like chips, chocolate, and coke!

The Alimentary Canal

The digestion and absorption of food take place in a muscular tube that runs for over thirty feet (about nine meters) from the mouth to the anus. This is the digestive tract, sometimes referred to as the alimentary canal because we take our aliment (food) through it. It takes about fifteen hours for food to complete the trip through the alimentary canal.

Nurishment; the process of giving sustenance or support: When Susan was in hospital, Dr. Fisk ordered her to have intravenous alimentation until she could eat normal food again.

The science or study of nutrition: Lucy wanted to learn more about what foods were healthy, and which ones were not, so she decided to study alimentology at her local college.

Treatment with systematic feeding; dietetic treatment: When Jean had her physical check-up at Dr. Smith's office, he told her that an alimentotherapy would be very good for her because of her obesity..

1. A court-ordered support paid by one spouse to the other after they are separated: Alimony is the money paid regularly by one marriage partner to the other as ordered by a court after a legal separation or divorce, or during proceedings for divorce or separation.
2. A means of livelihood; maintenance: An alimony can be granted to a spouse when adultery has occurred . during marriage and can provide the means of living.

Alimony can be called literally, a "meal ticket" when we consider the original source of the word. It is borrowed from Latin alimonia, "nourishment, sustenance", from alere, "to nourish".

The primitive English meaning was "maintenance" or "the means of livelihood", a meaning which is now overshadowed by the use of the word in connection with separated couples.

In lexicomedy, the bounty of mutiny or the bounty after the mutiny: After the rebellion on the ship, the sailors enjoyed all the alimonies they gathered together.

1. Intravenous feeding that provides patients with all essential nutrients when they are unable to feed themselves.
2. A program of parenteral administration of all nutrients for patients with gastrointestinal dysfunction: Hyperalimentation is also called total parenteral alimentation (TPA) and total parenteral nutrition (TPN). 3. The ingestion, or eating, of excessive quantities of food, etc.: People who suffer from hyperalimentatio can be caused by bulimia and binge eating, which is uncontrolled ingestion of large quantities of food in a given amount of time, often with a sense of lack of control over the activity.

It is sometimes followed by forcing oneself to vomit, or purging through use of laxatives.

A nutritional ailment connected with an inadequate amount of nourishment: Dr. Rawson told Susan's mother that Susan had a case of hypoalimentation showing signs of malnutrition which would cause health problems.

The act of overfeeding, or making one take food in excess of the natural appetite for it: Tom ate all of the large and delicious cake all at once,which his friends commented on as Tom having a case of superalimentation!

A process contributing to the postgastrectomy syndrome in which food rapidly enters the small intestine via a gastroenterostomy: Dr. Edwards told Mr. Edison that a surgical process of gastrectomy had to be performed, after which the condition of tachchyalimentation would occur.