methylate

American  

[meth-uh-leyt] / ˈmɛθ əˌleɪt /

noun

1. Also called methoxide.  any derivative of methyl alcohol, as sodium methylate, CH 3 ONa.

2. any compound containing the methyl group.

---

verb (used with object)

methylated, methylating

1. (in a compound) to replace (one or more hydrogen atoms) with the methyl group.

2. to mix with methyl alcohol, as in the denaturation of ethyl alcohol.

methylate British  

/ ˈmɛθɪˌleɪt /

verb

1. (tr) to mix with methanol

2. to undergo or cause to undergo a chemical reaction in which a methyl group is introduced into a molecule

---

noun

1. another name for methoxide

methylate Scientific  

/ mĕth′ə-lāt′ /

1. An organic compound having the general formula CH ₃ OR, in which R is a metal. Methylates are formed by replacing the hydrogen of the hydroxyl group (OH) of methyl alcohol with a metal.

---

1. To combine with the methyl radical.

Other Word Forms

• methylation
  noun
• methylator
  noun
• unmethylated
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of methylate

First recorded in 1825–35; methyl- + -ate ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

methylate methylated

RBPs methylate miRNA to inhibit its function and thus stop mRNA degradation.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

Last night, however, I managed to secure and methylate a good-sized scorpion.

From Australia Twice Traversed, Illustrated, by Giles, Ernest

The preliminary experiments showed that condensation with sodium methylate takes a long time and gives a product which it is difficult to handle in large quantities.

From Organic Syntheses by Conant, James Bryant

The latter is then made to methylate a product, aniline, derived indirectly from coal-tar.

From Coal and What We Get from It by Meldola, Raphael

They form unstable addition products with sodium ethylate or methylate.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 7 "Equation" to "Ethics" by Various

The shuttle greatly increases both the speed and efficiency of triplet energy transfer compared with a methylated analog that does not contain the proton shuttle.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 22, 2026

In cancer cells, the DNA in the promoter region of silenced genes is methylated on cytosine DNA residues in CpG islands.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

He found 55 clusters of methylated cytosines—between 33 and 1864 sites per cluster—many of which turned out to correlate with species-specific traits such as maximum life span, average adult weight, and age at sexual maturity.

From Science Magazine ● Oct. 18, 2021

In addition to prescription medications, she used methylated spirits, tea tree oil, and even put toothpaste on the spots.

From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2020

The spray was a 25 per cent DDT concentrate suspended in a solvent containing methylated naphthalenes.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson