chromatophore

[ kruh-mat-uh-fawr, -fohr, kroh-muh-tuh‐ ]

/ krəˈmæt əˌfɔr, -ˌfoʊr, ˈkroʊ mə tə‐ /

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noun

Zoology. a cell containing pigment, especially one that through contraction and expansion produces a temporary color, as in cuttlefishes.

Botany. one of the colored plastids in plant cells.

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Origin of chromatophore

First recorded in 1860–65; chromato- + -phore

OTHER WORDS FROM chromatophore

chro·mat·o·phor·ic

[kruh-mat-uh-fawr-ik, ‐for-ik, kroh-muh-tuh‐], /krəˌmæt əˈfɔr ɪk, ‐ˈfɒr ɪk, ˈkroʊ mə tə‐/, chro·ma·toph·or·ous

[kroh-muh-tof-er-uhs], /ˌkroʊ məˈtɒf ər əs/, adjective

Words nearby chromatophore

chromatology, chromatolysis, chromatophil, chromatophilia, chromatophobia, chromatophore, chromatopsia, chromaturia, chrome, chrome alum, chrome dioxide

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use chromatophore in a sentence

The pyrenoid is evidently concerned in the formation of the chromatophore, or in its division.
The Diatomaceae of Philadelphia and Vicinity|Charles Sumner Boyer
The cell-wall and the chromatophore bands divide, each nucleus passes to the centre, and two new cells are formed.
The Diatomaceae of Philadelphia and Vicinity|Charles Sumner Boyer
In C. pediculus, a single chromatophore occurs on the inside of the upper valve.
The Diatomaceae of Philadelphia and Vicinity|Charles Sumner Boyer
Schmitz states that the chromatophore is thickened in the middle and contains a pyrenoid.
The Diatomaceae of Philadelphia and Vicinity|Charles Sumner Boyer

Chromatophore single, covering the entire interior of the frustule, except the ventral part of the zone and the median lines.
The Diatomaceae of Philadelphia and Vicinity|Charles Sumner Boyer

British Dictionary definitions for chromatophore

chromatophore

/ (ˈkrəʊmətəˌfɔː) /

noun

a cell in the skin of frogs, chameleons, etc, in which pigment is concentrated or dispersed, causing the animal to change colour

another name for chromoplast

Derived forms of chromatophore

chromatophoric or chromatophorous (ˌkrəʊməˈtɒfərəs), adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medical definitions for chromatophore

chromatophore

[ krō-măt′ə-fôr′ ]

A specialized pigment-bearing organelle in certain photosynthetic bacteria and cyanobacteria.

A pigment-bearing phagocyte found chiefly in the skin, mucous membrane, and choroid coat of the eye, as well as in melanomas.pigment cell

Variant ofchromophore

Other words from chromatophore

chro•mat′o•phor′ic (-fôr′ĭk) adj.