molecule
pronunciation
How to pronounce molecule in British English:
UK [ˈmɒlɪkjuːl]
How to pronounce molecule in American English:
US [ˈmɑːlɪkjuːl]
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- Noun:
- (physics and chemistry) the simplest structural unit of an element or compound
- (nontechnical usage) a tiny piece of anything
Word Origin
- molecule (n.)
- 1794, "extremely minute particle," from French molécule (1670s), from Modern Latin molecula, diminutive of Latin moles "mass, barrier" (see mole (3)). A vague meaning at first; the vogue for the word (used until late 18c. only in Latin form) can be traced to the philosophy of Descartes. First used of Modern Latin molecula in modern scientific sense by Amedeo Avogadro (1811).
Example
- 1. The molecule is most famously found in fatty fish .
- 2. The molecule is certainly ubiquitous .
- 3. But the dna molecule is passive .
- 4. In particular , nicotine is a highly flexible molecule .
- 5. Instead it was a molecule called green fluorescent protein .