Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated September 2025
Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated September 2025
Definition
Chyme is a semi-fluid mass of partly digested food that is expelled by the stomach into the duodenum at the beginning of the small intestine. It results from the mechanical and chemical breakdown of foods mixed with gastric juices.
Related terms
Gastric juice: A mixture of hydrochloric acid, enzymes, and other substances produced by glands in the stomach lining that helps break down food into chyme.
The series of wave-like muscle contractions that moves food through the digestive tract, including moving chyme from the stomach to the small intestine