ossification
noun
os·si·fi·ca·tion ˌä-sə-fə-ˈkā-shən 
1
a
: the natural process of bone formation
b
: the hardening (as of muscular tissue) into a bony substance
2
: a mass or particle of ossified tissue
3
: a tendency toward or state of being molded into a rigid, conventional, sterile, or unimaginative condition
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web The Risser grade looks at the pelvic bone to document its growth and ossification; the Sanders score does the same by looking at the left hand. 
Katie Palmer, STAT, 14 May 2021 The ossification of unemployment could make the last phases of the recovery slower and more painful as people are unable to return to their old jobs quickly and may need to find new ones in different industries. Jason Furman, WSJ, 25 Jan. 2021 The pressure eliminates the possibility of a swim bladder; the lack of food precludes the ossification of bones. Ben Taub, The New Yorker, 10 May 2020 Tehran hopes for American strategic ossification that could prove politically toxic. Victor Davis Hanson, National Review, 9 Jan. 2020 Meanwhile, our Huffy was in the beginning throes of ossification, its chain and sprockets a rusty mess. Ezra Dyer, Popular Mechanics, 18 July 2019 Intriguingly, as Laura Geggel of Live Science notes, the patterns of ossification observed in the Las Hoyas fossil are different from those seen in among other baby enantiornithines. Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, 6 Mar. 2018 Trauma to muscle, such as a fall or injury, may trigger rapid ossification of the area. Fox News, 18 July 2017 See More
Katie Palmer, STAT, 14 May 2021 The ossification of unemployment could make the last phases of the recovery slower and more painful as people are unable to return to their old jobs quickly and may need to find new ones in different industries. Jason Furman, WSJ, 25 Jan. 2021 The pressure eliminates the possibility of a swim bladder; the lack of food precludes the ossification of bones. Ben Taub, The New Yorker, 10 May 2020 Tehran hopes for American strategic ossification that could prove politically toxic. Victor Davis Hanson, National Review, 9 Jan. 2020 Meanwhile, our Huffy was in the beginning throes of ossification, its chain and sprockets a rusty mess. Ezra Dyer, Popular Mechanics, 18 July 2019 Intriguingly, as Laura Geggel of Live Science notes, the patterns of ossification observed in the Las Hoyas fossil are different from those seen in among other baby enantiornithines. Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, 6 Mar. 2018 Trauma to muscle, such as a fall or injury, may trigger rapid ossification of the area. Fox News, 18 July 2017 See More Word History
First Known Use
1671, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Medical Definition
ossification
noun
os·si·fi·ca·tion ˌäs-ə-fə-ˈkā-shən
1
a
: the process of bone formation usually beginning at particular centers in each prospective bone and involving the activities of special osteoblasts that segregate and deposit inorganic bone substance about themselves compare calcification sense a
b
: an instance of this process
2
a
: the condition of being altered into a hard bony substance
ossification of soft tissue
b
: a mass or particle of ossified tissue : a calcareous deposit in the tissues
ossifications in the aortic wall