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neuron

[noo r-on, nyoo r-]
See more synonyms for neuron on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. Cell Biology. a specialized, impulse-conducting cell that is the functional unit of the nervous system, consisting of the cell body and its processes, the axon and dendrites.
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Also especially British, neu·rone [noo r-ohn, nyoo r-] /ˈnʊər oʊn, ˈnyʊər-/.
Compare synapse.

Origin of neuron

First recorded in 1880–85, neuron is from the Greek word neûron sinew, cord, nerve
Also called nerve cell.
Related formsneu·ron·al [noo r-uh-nl, nyoo r-, noo-rohn-l, nyoo-] /ˈnʊər ə nl, ˈnyʊər-, nʊˈroʊn l, nyʊ-/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for neuron

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • These are transferred from neuron to neuron through the synapse.

    Psychotherapy

    James J. Walsh

  • The contact of the axon of one neuron with the dendrons of another is called a synapse.

    Psychotherapy

    James J. Walsh

  • That is not a loss of memory but a failure of neuron connections.

    Psychotherapy

    James J. Walsh

  • The word is derived from the Greek neuron nerve, and astheneia weakness.

    Why Worry?

    George Lincoln Walton, M.D.

  • Neuron, nū′ron, n. the cerebro-spinal axis in its entirety: a nervure of an insect's wing.

Word Origin and History for neuron

n.

"a nerve cell with appendages," 1891, from German Neuron, from Greek neuron (see neuro-). Used earlier (1884) for "the spinal cord and brain."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
neuron in Medicine

neuron

(nur′ŏn′)
n.
  1. Any of the impulse-conducting cells that constitute the brain, spinal column, and nerves, consisting of a nucleated cell body with one or more dendrites and a single axon.nerve cell neurocyte
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
neuron in Science

neuron

[nur′ŏn′]
  1. A cell of the nervous system. Neurons typically consist of a cell body, which contains a nucleus and receives incoming nerve impulses, and an axon, which carries impulses away from the cell body. Also called nerve cell
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.