ground substance
Americannoun
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Also called matrix. the homogeneous substance in which the fibers and cells of connective tissue are embedded.
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Also called hyaloplasm. the clear portion of the cell cytoplasm; cytosol.
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The intercellular material in which the cells and fibers of connective tissue are embedded, composed largely of glycosaminoglycans, metabolites, water, and ions.
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The clear, fluid portion of cytoplasm as distinguished from the organelles and other cell components.
Etymology
Origin of ground substance
First recorded in 1880–85
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Both tissues have a variety of cell types and protein fibers suspended in a viscous ground substance.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013
Connective tissues come in a vast variety of forms, yet they typically have in common three characteristic components: cells, large amounts of amorphous ground substance, and protein fibers.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013
All of these fiber types are embedded in ground substance.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013
Spinal discs, cushionlike pads that separate the vertebrae, are composed of tough, cartilaginous fibers and filled with water and a protein called "ground substance."
From Time Magazine Archive
Marriage and the begetting and care of children, is the very ground substance in the life of the community.
From The New Machiavelli by Wells, H. G. (Herbert George)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
