waterswollen

Waterswollen is an adjective used in English to describe tissue, organs, or substances that have swollen due to the uptake or retention of water. The term is largely historical or literary and is not commonly used in contemporary medical or scientific vocabulary, where edema, hydrops, or fluid overload are preferred. In medical writing, waterswollen limbs or feet may be described in older texts to illustrate edema, where interstitial fluid accumulates in the tissues, leading to pitting or non-pitting swelling depending on the cause.

In botany and horticulture, waterswollen can describe plant tissues that become turgid or swollen after water uptake, or fruits and seeds that have absorbed water, sometimes resulting in softening or bursting if rapid edema occurs. In soils, waterlogged conditions can produce water-filled soil pores that are described as waterswollen, though "waterlogged" is more standard.

Etymology: formed from water and swollen; attested in older English usage to convey swelling due to fluid accumulation. Current usage tends to favor specific terms such as edema, hydrops, or waterlogging, depending on context.

See also: edema, hydrops, turgor, waterlogging, osmosis.