pepsin
Americannoun
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an enzyme, produced in the stomach, that in the presence of hydrochloric acid splits proteins into proteoses and peptones.
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a commercial form of this substance, obtained from the stomachs of hogs, used as a digestive, as a ferment in the manufacture of cheese, etc.
noun
Etymology
Origin of pepsin
1835–45; < Greek péps ( is ) digestion ( pep-, base of péptein to digest + -sis -sis ) + -in 2
Vocabulary lists containing pepsin
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.
The enzyme pepsin plays an important role in the digestion of proteins by breaking down the intact protein to peptides, which are short chains of four to nine amino acids.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
When digesting protein and some fats, the stomach lining must be protected from getting digested by pepsin.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
An enzyme called pepsin digests protein in the stomach.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
Protein digestion is mediated by an enzyme called pepsin in the stomach chamber.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
The soft drink had been named for the digestive enzyme pepsin, he sagely told us, and so was suited to the task.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
