immersion

 
Pronunciation: /ɪˈməːʃ(ə)n/

noun

[mass noun]
  • 1the action of immersing someone or something in a liquid: his back was still raw from immersion in the icy Atlantic sea
  • baptism by immersing a person bodily (but not necessarily completely) in water.
  • 2deep mental involvement: her total immersion in work meant that she had few real friends
  • a method of teaching a foreign language by the exclusive use of that language: as a teacher she advocates learning by immersion [as modifier]: an immersion school
  • 3 Astronomy the disappearance of a celestial body in the shadow of or behind another.

Origin:

late 15th century: from late Latin immersio(n-), from immergere 'dip into' (see immerse)