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dry cell

noun Electricity.
  1. a cell in which the electrolyte exists in the form of a paste, is absorbed in a porous medium, or is otherwise restrained from flowing.
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Compare battery(def 1).

Origin of dry cell

First recorded in 1890–95
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for dry cell

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • There are several kinds of batteries, as liquid, dry-cell and storage.

  • His father told us that he always had dry-cell and other batteries around the house.

    Analyzing Character

    Katherine M. H. Blackford and Arthur Newcomb

  • Fill the dry-cell vessel with this solution and allow it to remain until the blotting paper is completely saturated.

British Dictionary definitions for dry cell

dry cell

noun
  1. a primary cell in which the electrolyte is in the form of a paste or is treated in some way to prevent it from spillingCompare wet cell
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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
dry cell in Science

dry cell

  1. A galvanic electric cell, such as a flashlight battery, in which the chemicals in the electrolyte are made into a paste so that they cannot easily spill from their container. Compare wet cell.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.