Synonyms

catabolic

American

[kat-uh-bol-ik] / ˌkæt əˈbɒl ɪk /

adjective

Biology, Physiology.

involving or stimulating the breakdown of complex substances into simpler ones as part of the process of metabolism in living organisms (opposed to anabolic).

The protein catabolic rate is the rate at which proteins break down in the body.

Other Word Forms

catabolically

adverb

Etymology

Origin of catabolic

catabol(ism) ( def. ) + -ic

Vocabulary lists containing catabolic

Cell Biology - High School

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Example Sentences

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See Examples For:

catabolic

Increased atmospheric oxygen allowed the development of more efficient O2-utilizing catabolic pathways.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

Additionally, ATP is an allosteric regulator of some of the enzymes involved in the catabolic breakdown of sugar, the process that produces ATP.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

Molecular energy stored in the bonds of complex molecules is released in catabolic pathways and harvested in such a way that it can be used to produce ATP.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

Glucose synthesis and glucose breakdown are examples of anabolic and catabolic pathways, respectively.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

She has, if you please, become temporarily catabolic.

From A Short History of Women's Rights From the Days of Augustus to the Present Time. with Special Reference to England and the United States. Second Edition Revised, With Additions. by Eugene Arthur Hecker

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023