cleavage
noun
- a cleaving, splitting, or dividing
- the manner in which a thing splits
- a cleft; fissure; division
- the hollow between a woman's breasts, as made visible by a low-cut neckline
- Biol.
- cell division, esp. the series of mitotic cell divisions that transform the fertilized ovum into the earliest embryonic stage
- any single division in this series
- Mineralogy the tendency of some minerals to break in definite planes, producing smooth surfaces
See cleavage in American Heritage Dictionary 4
(klēˈvĭj)
noun- The act of splitting or cleaving.
- The state of being split or cleft; a fissure or division.
- Mineralogy The splitting or tendency to split of a crystallized substance along definite crystalline planes, yielding smooth surfaces.
- Embryology
a. The series of mitotic cell divisions that produces a blastula from a fertilized ovum. It is the basis of the multicellularity of complex organisms. Also called segmentation.
b. Any single cell division in such a series.
- Chemistry The splitting of a complex molecule, such as a polysaccharide, into simpler molecules.
- Informal The hollow between a woman's breasts, especially as revealed by a low neckline.
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