Noun, pl. ossifications
1. The process of laying down new bone material by cells called osteoblasts. It is synonymous with bone tissue formation. There are two processes resulting in the formation of normal, healthy bone tissue:[1] Intramembranous ossification is the direct laying down of bone into the primitive connective tissue (mesenchyme), while endochondral ossification involves cartilage as a precursor. (wikipedia.org)
2. The normal process by which bone is formed. (wiktionary.org)
3. The calcification of tissue into a bonelike mass; the mass so formed. (wiktionary.org)
4. a. The process of becoming set in one’s ways or beliefs; rigid conventionality. (wiktionary.org)
b. The process of becoming rigidly fixed in a conventional pattern of thought or behavior. (biology-online.org)
Syn: osteogenesis
Word origin: From Latin ossis “of bones,” genitive of os “bone.”