dendrite

American  

[den-drahyt] / ˈdɛn draɪt /

noun

1. Petrology, Mineralogy.

   1. a branching figure or marking, resembling moss or a shrub or tree in form, found on or in certain stones or minerals due to the presence of a foreign material.

   2. any arborescent crystalline growth.

2. Anatomy. the branching process of a neuron that conducts impulses toward the cell.

---

dendrite British  

/ ˈdɛndraɪt, dɛnˈdrɪtɪk /

noun

1. Also called: dendron.  any of the short branched threadlike extensions of a nerve cell, which conduct impulses towards the cell body

2. a branching mosslike crystalline structure in some rocks and minerals

3. a crystal that has branched during growth and has a treelike form

---

dendrite Scientific  

/ dĕn′drīt′ /

1. Any of several parts branching from the body of a neuron that receive and transmit nerve impulses.

2. A mineral that has a branching crystal pattern. Dendrites often form within or on the surface of other minerals and often consist of manganese oxides.

---

Other Word Forms

• dendritic adjective
• dendritically adverb

Etymology

Origin of dendrite

1720–30; < Greek dendrī́tēs pertaining to a tree, equivalent to dendr- dendr- + -ītēs -ite ¹

Example Sentences

Among the many observations that researchers will unpack in future studies, one stood out: the team noted that a certain protein stood out for its prolific binding of mRNA in the dendrite.

From Science Daily • Apr. 9, 2024

The study reveals the Alex3/Gαq mitochondrial complex interacts with the mitochondria machinery to distribute and transport these cell organelles along the neurons' axons and dendrite.

From Science Daily • Feb. 7, 2024

For instance, everyone knows the classic snowflake shape, which is technically known as a dendrite, he says.

From Washington Post • Jan. 22, 2023

Many tiny hair-like cilia protrude from the olfactory receptor cell’s dendrite and into the mucus covering the surface of the olfactory epithelium.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

Carlyle pushes his mop toward a cowering batch of them, and they skitter away on purple little dendrite legs.

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman