molecule
[mol-uh-kyool]
- Chemistry, Physics. the smallest physical unit of an element or compound, consisting of one or more like atoms in an element and two or more different atoms in a compound.
- Chemistry. a quantity of a substance, the weight of which, measured in any chosen unit, is numerically equal to the molecular weight; gram molecule.
- any very small particle.
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Origin of molecule
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
fragment, particle, jot, speck, minim, mote, modicum, bit, mite, iota, unit, ray, ounceExamples from the Web for molecule
Contemporary Examples
Each type of atom and molecule has its own unique spectrum, according to the rules of quantum mechanics.
Specifically, it targets a molecule called VEGF that sends signals that promote the growth of blood vessels.
And those examples are a molecule in the atom bomb of the Internet.
A molecule of carbon dioxide traps heat, radiant heat, the long wave end of the spectrum.
Historical Examples
The ion differs from the molecule, the corpuscle and the atom in that it is an ion.
The Devil's DictionaryAmbrose Bierce
The ions formed by the dissociation of any molecule are of two kinds.
An Elementary Study of ChemistryWilliam McPherson
A molecule is the smallest particle of a compound which can exist.
An Elementary Study of ChemistryWilliam McPherson
This will be the sum of the weights of the nitrogen atoms in the molecule.
An Elementary Study of ChemistryWilliam McPherson
We cannot be good to an atom of hydrogen, or unjust to a molecule of water.
The Truth of ChristianityWilliam Harry Turton
molecule
- the simplest unit of a chemical compound that can exist, consisting of two or more atoms held together by chemical bonds
- a very small particle
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Word Origin
C18: via French from New Latin mōlēcula, diminutive of Latin mōlēs mass, mole 4
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
Word Origin and History for molecule
n.
1794, "extremely minute particle," from French molécule (1670s), from Modern Latin molecula, diminutive of Latin moles "mass, barrier" (see mole (3)). A vague meaning at first; the vogue for the word (used until late 18c. only in Latin form) can be traced to the philosophy of Descartes. First used of Modern Latin molecula in modern scientific sense by Amedeo Avogadro (1811).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
molecule
(mŏl′ĭ-kyōōl′)- The smallest particle into which an element or a compound can be divided without changing its chemical and physical properties; a group of atoms that is held together chemically.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
molecule
[mŏl′ĭ-kyōōl′]
- A group of two or more atoms linked together by sharing electrons in a chemical bond. Molecules are the fundamental components of chemical compounds and are the smallest part of a compound that can participate in a chemical reaction.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
molecule
[(mol-uh-kyoohl)]
A combination of two or more atoms held together by a force between them. (See covalent bond and ionic bond.)
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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.