replication

American  

[rep-li-kay-shuhn] / ˌrɛp lɪˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

• replications
  plural

1. a reply; answer.

2. a reply to an answer.

3. Law. the reply of the plaintiff or complainant to the defendant's plea or answer.

4. reverberation; echo.

5. a copy.

6. the act or process of replicating, especially for experimental purposes.

7. Genetics. semiconservative replication.

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replication British  

/ ˌrɛplɪˈkeɪʃən /

noun

1. a reply or response

2. law (formerly) the plaintiff's reply to a defendant's answer or plea

3. biology the production of exact copies of complex molecules, such as DNA molecules, that occurs during growth of living organisms

4. repetition of a procedure, such as a scientific experiment, in order to reduce errors

5. a less common word for replica

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonreplication
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• replications
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of replication

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English replicacioun, from Middle French replication, from Latin replicātiōn- (stem of replicātiō ) “a rolling back,” equivalent to replicāt(us) + -iōn- suffix forming nouns; see origin at replicate, -ion

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Explanation

If you make a copy of something, like a form or a picture, you have made a replication of it. You might need to mail in a replication of your tax forms when you apply for college financial aid. When you conduct an experiment, you have to repeat it several times to verify that your hypothesis is correct. Each repetition is one replication. A witty retort to a comment or question is also called a replication. Your replications to the teacher's questions may make your classmates laugh, but your smart mouth is bound to get you in trouble eventually.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

replication replications

So singular that it all but defies any kind of tea-leaf-reading or, heaven forbid, attempts at replication.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

Approval should rest on targeted clinical studies showing comparable therapeutic benefit, not on demonstrating molecular replication of the reference drug, as in the large-molecule biosimilar paradigm.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

To reach that goal, researchers need to know which viral proteins interact with human proteins, where those contacts occur, and how the virus uses them to support its own replication.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026

The researchers found that excess EXO1 destabilizes newly formed DNA through two main mechanisms, expanding single-stranded DNA gaps and degrading reversed replication forks.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 20, 2026

Under this scheme, gene replication starts with the separation of its two identical chains.

From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson

Across the board, the project revealed extremely high replicability rates of their social-behavioral findings, and no statistically significant evidence of decline over repeated replications.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 9, 2023

Science is cumulative, and replications build its comprehensive and credible body.

From Scientific American ● Jul. 10, 2023

Indeed, vague protocols and uncooperative authors, among other problems, ultimately prevented RP:CB from completing replications for 30 of the 53 papers it had initially flagged, the team reports in two capstone papers in eLife.

From Science Magazine ● Dec. 7, 2021

But decades later many who knew him still feel protective, and recent replications have unleashed, along with fond memories, skepticism and even rage.

From New York Times ● Oct. 20, 2021

And therefore without replications, lets hear your Ketch, Scholer, which I hope will be a good one, for you are both Musical, and have a good fancie to boot.

From The Complete Angler 1653 by Izaak Walton

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