Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

metaphase plate

American  

noun

Cell Biology.

  1. a plane in the equatorial region of the spindle in dividing cells, along which the chromosomes become arranged during the metaphase.

Etymology

Origin of metaphase plate

First recorded in 1935–40

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.

For almost twenty years, textbooks described CENP-E as a motor that pulled chromosomes to the metaphase plate.

From Science Daily • Dec. 10, 2025

They line up at the midway point between the two poles of the cell to form the metaphase plate.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

They line up at the midway between the two poles of the cell to form the metaphase plate.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Sister chromatids line up at the metaphase plate.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013

Sister chromatids line up at the metaphase plate.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013

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.