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Nucleus
//ˈnjuː.kli.əs// noun
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The core, central part of something, around which other elements are assembled.
"Situated in the centre of the largest agricultural basin in northern Formosa, T’ai-pei (population in 1964 was estimated to be 1,117,000) forms the nucleus of a major industrial area. The T’ai-pei industrial complex includes light and heavy industies within the urbanized area and also in several industrial suburbs, including Pan-ch’iao and Nan-chiang."
- 2 the central structure of the lens that is surrounded by the cortex wordnet
- 3 An initial part or version that will receive additions.
"This collection will form the nucleus of a new library."
- 4 a part of the cell containing DNA and RNA and responsible for growth and reproduction wordnet
- 5 The massive, positively charged central part of an atom, made up of protons and neutrons.
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- 6 any histologically identifiable mass of neural cell bodies in the brain or spinal cord wordnet
- 7 A large membrane-enclosed organelle found in eukaryotic cells which contains genetic material.
- 8 a small group of indispensable persons or things wordnet
- 9 A ganglion, cluster of many neuronal bodies where synapsing occurs.
- 10 the positively charged dense center of an atom wordnet
- 11 The central part of a syllable, most commonly a vowel.
- 12 (astronomy) the center of the head of a comet; consists of small solid particles of ice and frozen gas that vaporizes on approaching the sun to form the coma and tail wordnet
- 13 A small bee-hive used to create a colony from a larger existing one.
Etymology
Learned borrowing from Latin nucleus (“kernel, core”). The earliest uses refer to the head of a comet and the kernel of a seed, both recorded in Lexicon Technicum in 1704. The sense in atomic physics was coined by British scientist Michael Faraday in 1844 in a theoretical meaning.
See also for "nucleus"
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