cytology

American  

[sahy-tol-uh-jee] / saɪˈtɒl ə dʒi /

noun

1. the study of the microscopic appearance of cells, especially for the diagnosis of abnormalities and malignancies.

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cytology British  

/ saɪˈtɒlədʒɪ, ˌsaɪtəˈlɒdʒɪkəl /

noun

1. the study of plant and animal cells, including their structure, function, and formation

2. the detailed structure of a tissue, as revealed by microscopic examination

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cytology Scientific  

/ sī-tŏl′ə-jē /

1. The scientific study of the formation, structure, and function of cells.

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Other Word Forms

• cytologic adjective
• cytological adjective
• cytologically adverb
• cytologist noun

Etymology

Origin of cytology

First recorded in 1885–90; cyto- + -logy

Example Sentences

If HPV is detected a cytology test is used to check for any abnormal cells.

From BBC • Oct. 9, 2023

Cancer Research UK said that as HPV primary testing is more accurate and sensitive than cytology, it would encourage the transition to happen "as soon as possible".

From BBC • Nov. 7, 2022

Two years later, he received a master’s degree from Texas Tech in cytology, the study of cells.

From Washington Post • Mar. 18, 2022

The contributions of cytology continued in the early twentieth century with the work of Walter Sutton.

From Nature • Apr. 15, 2019

We may indeed date the birth of animal cytology from Schleiden’s short but epoch-making paper.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 8 "Cube" to "Daguerre, Louis" by Various