cell
cell definition
cell (sel)
noun
- a small convent or monastery attached to a larger one
- a hermit's hut
- a small room or cubicle, as in a convent or prison
- a very small hollow, cavity, or enclosed space; specif.,
- any of the compartments in a honeycomb
- a small, hollow space in tissue, esp. in bone
- the space of an insect's wings enclosed by the veins
- any compartment of an ovary; also, a pollen sac or spore sac
- any of the smallest organizational units of a group or movement, as of a Communist party
- Biol. a very small, complex unit of protoplasm, usually with a nucleus, cytoplasm, and an enclosing membrane: all plants and animals are made up of one or more cells that usually combine to form various tissues
- Elec.
- an open or sealed container holding electrodes and an electrolyte, used to generate electricity by chemical reactions or to decompose compounds by electrolysis
- any compartment of a storage battery
- a unit within any device, as a solar battery, that produces voltage by converting radiant energy into electrical energy
Etymology: ME < OE < OFr celle < L cella, small room, hut (LL(Ec), monastic cell) < IE base *kel-, to conceal > hall, hell, hull, Goth halja
Related Forms:
- celled adjective
Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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