contractile vacuole

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noun Cell Biology.

a membrane-enveloped cellular organelle, found in many microorganisms, that periodically expands, filling with water, and then contracts, expelling its contents to the cell exterior: thought to be important in maintaining hydrostatic equilibrium.

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Origin of contractile vacuole

First recorded in 1875–80

Words nearby contractile vacuole

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How to use contractile vacuole in a sentence

This is done by pulsation of the vacuole, which ultimately bursts, passing fluid waste to the outside.
A Civic Biology|George William Hunter
These masses of food seem to be inclosed within a little area containing fluid, called a vacuole.
A Civic Biology|George William Hunter
Waste nitrogenous products formed within the cell when work is done are passed out by means of the contractile vacuole.
A Civic Biology|George William Hunter
In another one-celled animal called vorticella, part of the cell has become elongated and is contractile.
A Civic Biology|George William Hunter

The body of the Uterus is formed of a very dense, gray colored, muscular substance, possessing astonishing contractile power.
The Matron's Manual of Midwifery, and the Diseases of Women During Pregnancy and in Childbed|Frederick Hollick