Absorbent

1. n. The vessels by which the processes of absorption are carried on, as the lymphatics in animals, the extremities of the roots in plants.
2. a. Absorbing; swallowing; absorptive.
3. n. Anything which absorbs.
4. n. Any substance which absorbs and neutralizes acid fluid in the stomach and bowels, as magnesia, chalk, etc.; also a substance e. g., iodine) which acts on the absorbent vessels so as to reduce enlarged and indurated parts.

The word meanings were obtained from OPTED(The Online Plain Text English Dictionary), which is based on “The Project Gutenberg Etext of Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary” which is in turn based on the 1913 US Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary (See Project Gutenburg), as a text file.