plasma

Also plasm

[plaz-muh]

noun

1. Anatomy, Physiology.,  the liquid part of blood or lymph, as distinguished from the suspended elements.

2. Cell Biology.,  cytoplasm.

3. whey.

4. a green, faintly translucent chalcedony.

5. Physics.,  a highly ionized gas containing an approximately equal number of positive ions and electrons.

plasma

/ ˈplæzmə, plæzˈmætɪk /

noun

1. the clear yellowish fluid portion of blood or lymph in which the red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets are suspended

2. short for blood plasma

3. a former name for protoplasm cytoplasm

4. physics

   1. a hot ionized material consisting of nuclei and electrons. It is sometimes regarded as a fourth state of matter and is the material present in the sun, most stars, and fusion reactors

   2. the ionized gas in an electric discharge or spark, containing positive ions and electrons and a small number of negative ions together with un-ionized material

5. a green slightly translucent variety of chalcedony, used as a gemstone

6. a less common term for whey

plasma

1. See blood plasma

2. Protoplasm or cytoplasm.

3. One of four main states of matter, similar to a gas, but consisting of positively charged ions with most or all of their detached electrons moving freely about. Plasmas are produced by very high temperatures, as in the Sun and other stars, and also by the ionization resulting from exposure to an electric current, as in a fluorescent light bulb or a neon sign.

4. See more at state of matter

plasma

¹

1. The liquid part of blood or lymph. Blood plasma is mainly water; it also contains gas es, nutrients, and hormones. The red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets are all suspended in the plasma of the blood.

plasma

²

1. A state of matter in which some or all of the electrons have been torn from their parent atoms. The negatively charged electrons and positively charged ions move independently.

Plasmas are usually associated with very high temperatures — most of the sun is a plasma, for example.

Other Word Forms

• plasmatic adjective
• plasmic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of plasma¹

First recorded in 1705–15; from Late Latin, from Greek plásma “formed, molded (thing),” akin to plássein “to form, mold”; plastic

Word History and Origins

Origin of plasma¹

C18: from Late Latin: something moulded, from Greek, from plassein to mould

Example Sentences

Unlike the water that falls from clouds on Earth, solar rain takes place in the Sun's corona, the outermost layer made of intensely hot plasma.

Read more on Science Daily

At its heart lies a supermassive black hole that draws in matter from nearby space and propels some of it outward in colossal plasma jets filled with radiation, heat, magnetic fields, and heavy particles.

Read more on Science Daily

By combining these observations, SPO will not only capture images of the poles for the first time but also connect them to the flows of plasma and magnetic energy that shape the heliosphere.

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In this process, magnetic field lines break and reassemble, leading to magnetic energy being converted into heat, radiation, and eruptions of plasma.

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Dr Julian Mutz from King's College London said beyond organ transplantation, approaches like plasma replacement are being explored, but these remain experimental.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• beef 
• fat 
• meat 
• muscle