metaplasia

American

[met-uh-play-zhuh, -zhee-uh] / ˌmɛt əˈpleɪ ʒə, -ʒi ə /

noun

Pathology.

the transformation of one type of tissue into another.

metaplasia British

/ ˌmɛtəˈpleɪzɪə /

noun

the transformation of one kind of tissue into a different kind

"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

Other Word Forms

metaplastic

adjective

Etymology

Origin of metaplasia

First recorded in 1885–90; meta- + -plasia

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.

See Examples For:

metaplasia

The study offers clues into whether intestinal metaplasia cells directly transform into stomach cancer.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 11, 2023

It was revealed that a subpopulation of intestinal stem-like cells in patients with intestinal metaplasia closely resembles early stomach cancer cells, pointing to a possible early origin and potential of its malignant future.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 11, 2023

The longitudinal study, which represents the world's largest genomic survey of patients with intestinal metaplasia, examines more than 1,100 tissue samples using powerful technologies such as single-cell RNA sequencing and spatial transcriptomics*.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 11, 2023

“I’m not that smart. I have squamous metaplasia in my ileum.”

From New York Times ● Apr. 1, 2020

This change of one form of closely related tissue into another is called metaplasia....

From Q. E. D., or New Light on the Doctrine of Creation by George McCready Price

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word

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