Acclimation vs acclamation

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Grammarist

Acclimation and acclamation are two words which are very similar in spelling and pronunciation but have two different meanings. We will examine the difference in meaning between acclimation and acclamation, where these two words come from and some examples of their use in sentences.

Acclimation means the act of becoming accustomed to a change in environment, the act of adjusting to a change in physical climate or circumstances in a physical or psychological way. Acclimation is the noun form of the verb acclimate, which is derived from the French word acclimater, which means to adapt to climate.

Acclamation is a loud proclamation of approval. Acclamation may also describe a vote that is taken by a united oral proclamation of a group rather than a written ballot or roll call. The word acclamation is derived from the Latin word acclamationem which means an exclamation of approval, it is the noun form of the verb acclaim.

Examples

In her experiments, she is investigating how thermal acclimation — or the ability to favorably adapt — can be a potential mechanism for coral evolution. (The Chicago Daily Herald)

The rapid acclimation of freshman Davion Mintz and the emergence of junior Tyler Clement has given CU some stability at the point guard position. And the Bluejays appear to be finding their footing again after the injury. (The Omaha World-Herald)

Spieth, who was golf’s best player in 2015 by acclamation and spent 22 weeks at No. 1 as a result, has slipped to No. 6 and following his epic Masters collapse this past year, when he blew a five-stroke lead on the back nine of the final round. (The Monterey Herald)

The New Mexico House of Representatives today elected, by acclamation, Rep. Brian Egolf (D-Santa Fe) to be the Speaker of the House. (The Los Alamos Daily Post)