Emily Dickinson Lexicon

DI-GES'TION, n. [L. digestio.]

1. The conversion of food into chyme, or the process of decomposing aliment in the stomach and recomposing it in a new form, and thus preparing it for circulation and nourishment. A good digestion is essential to health.
2. In chimistry, the operation of exposing bodies to a gentle heat, to prepare them for some action on each other; or the slow action of a solvent on any substance.
3. The act of methodizing and reducing to order; the maturation of a design. – Temple.
4. The process of maturing an ulcer or wound, and disposing it to generate pus; or the generation of matter.
5. The process of dissolution and preparation of substances for manure, as in compost.