lipophilic

American

[lip-uh-fil-ik, lahy-puh-] / ˌlɪp əˈfɪl ɪk, ˌlaɪ pə- /

adjective

Physical Chemistry.

having a strong affinity for lipids.
promoting the dissolvability or absorbability of lipids.

lipophilic British

/ ˌlaɪ-, ˌlɪpəʊˈtrɒpɪk, ˌlɪpəʊˈfɪlɪk /

adjective

chem having an affinity for lipids

"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

Etymology

Origin of lipophilic

First recorded in 1945–50; lipo- ¹ + -philic

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.

Most of these toxics are lipophilic, stored in fats and blubber, and they really start circulating when mothers have less to eat, Weiss said.

From Seattle Times

Researchers have traditionally stained the cells with lipophilic dyes and employed fluorescence microscopy to study LDs within cells.

From Science Daily

THC is lipophilic, meaning it binds to fat molecules and can stay in the body for up to 30 days as it is slowly released in the blood stream.

From Salon

THC and CBD are molecules that are lipophilic, which means they love fat.

From Salon

THC is a lipophilic chemical, meaning it really loves fat and likes to bind to it.

From Salon

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023