impaction

Meaning

Noun

• Compression; the packing together of loose matter.
• something packed together tightly; a mass of densely-packed matter
• A solid, immobile bulk of stool.
• Failure of a tooth to erupt into the dental arch, because of adjacent teeth, dense overlying bone, excessive soft tissue, or other factor.

Origin

• From Latin impingere ("to dash against, impinge").