sucking

Sucking is the act of drawing a substance toward the mouth or into a cavity by creating a vacuum or negative pressure, usually through the lips, tongue, or specialized anatomical structures. The action can be voluntary, reflexive, or a mechanical process performed by devices that generate suction.

In humans, suckling is a primary feeding method for newborns. At birth infants display rooting and sucking reflexes that help them locate a nipple and coordinate jaw and tongue movements to extract milk. Sucking continues during breastfeeding or bottle feeding and may be practiced with pacifiers. Prolonged nonnutritive sucking can influence dental alignment and bite development in some children.

Medical and consumer contexts use suction in various ways. Suction devices employ pumps or negative pressure for airway clearance, wound care, anesthesia, laboratory work, and dental procedures. Suction cups use atmospheric pressure to hold onto smooth surfaces, and are common in household and industrial applications.

Biological and ecological examples show sucking as a feeding strategy beyond human infants. Many mammals rely on suckling during early life. In other organisms, fluids are obtained by suctioned feeding, such as mosquitoes drawing blood or aquatic animals that pull in water and prey. The term also covers actions by organisms that ingest liquids by placing the mouth near a surface and reducing pressure to draw the liquid inward.