1. having a higher concentration of solutes than another solution, causing water to move out of cells
Usage: biology; chemistry
2. having excessive muscle tone or tension
Usage: medical

Examples

• The hypertonic saline solution caused the red blood cells to shrink.
• When placed in a hypertonic environment, the plant cells lost water and wilted.
• The patient’s hypertonic muscles made movement difficult and painful.
• Seawater is hypertonic compared to human blood plasma.
• The doctor diagnosed the child with hypertonic cerebral palsy.
• In the lab, we observed how cells behaved in hypertonic solutions.