Acholic

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. A medical condition identified by a reduction in bile production, resulting in light-colored feces that indicate digestive problems
2. Referring to a health issue marked by insufficient bile output, leading to pale stool and associated digestive complications
3. A state characterized by reduced bile secretion that causes pale stool and signifies potential digestive disorders

Etymology: "Acholic" is built from the Greek prefix "a-", meaning "without," and "cholic," the adjective from "chole," Greek for bile. Put together, the word describes a condition in which bile is absent or insufficient, which is why it is used in medicine for the pale stools and digestive problems that can follow when bile fails to reach the intestine. The root "chole" also gave English a large family of medical terms, including "cholera" in the sense of a disease associated with bilious vomiting, and "cholesterol," a substance first isolated from gallstones. The shared element shows how closely the ancient Greeks linked bodily fluids to disease, since bile was thought to be one of the four humours governing health.