eukaryotic

American  

[yoo-kar-ee-ot-ik] / juˌkær iˈɒt ɪk /

Sometimes eucaryotic

adjective

Biology.

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a eukaryote, an organism whose basic structural unit is a cell containing specialized organelles and a membrane-bound nucleus.

   Some scientists believe that the greatest transition of life in the history of Earth is the evolution of eukaryotic cellular life forms from more primitive prokaryotes.

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Etymology

Origin of eukaryotic

First recorded in 1955–60; eukaryot(e) ( def. ) + -ic ( def. )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

eukaryotic

Every animal, plant, and fungus around us today is eukaryotic.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026

Anderson specializes in studying areas where enormous deposits of clay may have helped preserve ancient eukaryotic remains.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026

The alphaproteobacterium eventually evolved into the mitochondria, the structure inside eukaryotic cells that produces energy.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 20, 2026

The genes for these vault components are found in diverse eukaryotic organisms—those that pack their DNA in the nucleus and share other cellular features—with notable exceptions that include insects, plants, and fungi.

From Science Magazine ● Jun. 6, 2024

Later, when the time is right, there may be fusion and symbiosis among the bits, and then we will see eukaryotic thought, metazoans of thought, huge interliving coral shoals of thought.

From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas