Ingerendo

Ingerendo is the gerund of the Italian verb ingerire, meaning to swallow or ingest. It denotes the act of taking substances into the body through the mouth, including food, drink, and medications. The term appears in everyday Italian as well as in medical, nutritional, and pharmacological contexts to describe ingestion. Etymology traces the word to Latin ingerere (to bring in, to enter), via the Italian verb ingerire.

As a gerund, ingerendo is used to indicate ongoing action. For example, sto ingerendo una pillola means “I am swallowing a pill,” and sta ingerendo lentamente il liquido can describe slowly drinking a liquid. In clinical and scientific language, the act is more commonly referred to with the noun ingeszione or ingestione, depending on the context, with ingestione being the standard term for ingestion of food or liquids. Deglutizione is the related physiological term that specifically denotes the act of swallowing.

Usage notes:

- In everyday language, ingere or ingere una pillola is common when referring to taking medicine.

- In medical or nutritional writing, ingestione is the preferred noun for the act of taking in food or liquids, while deglutizione specifically denotes swallowing.

- The gerund ingerendo can function as a descriptive form in narratives or descriptions of ongoing processes.

See also: ingerire, ingestione, deglutizione.