phosphatase

[ fos-fuh-teys, -teyz ]

nounBiochemistry.

any of several classes of esterases of varying specificity that catalyze the hydrolysis of phosphoric esters.

Origin of phosphatase

First recorded in 1910–15; phosphate + -ase

Words Nearby phosphatase

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use phosphatase in a sentence

What’s more, the wildflowers’ sticky hairs oozed phosphatase, a digestive enzyme that many carnivorous plants secrete to consume prey.
A well-known wildflower turns out to be a secret carnivore | Jaime Chambers | August 18, 2021 | Science News

British Dictionary definitions for phosphatase

phosphatase

/ (ˈfɒsfəˌteɪs, -ˌteɪz) /

noun

any of a group of enzymes that catalyse the hydrolysis of organic phosphates

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

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