procaryote

[ proh-kar-ee-oht, -ee-uh t ]

/ proʊˈkær iˌoʊt, -i ət /

noun

Nearby words

procapitalist, procapsid, procarbazine, procarboxypeptidase, procarp, procaryote, procathedral, procedural, procedural agreement, procedure, proceed

Origin of procaryote

First recorded in 1960–65

Related forms

pro·car·y·ot·ic

[proh-kar-ee-ot-ik] /proʊˌkær iˈɒt ɪk/, adjective

Definition for procaryote (2 of 2)

prokaryote

or pro·car·y·ote

[ proh-kar-ee-oht, -ee-uh t ]

/ proʊˈkær iˌoʊt, -i ət /

noun

any cellular organism that has no nuclear membrane, no organelles in the cytoplasm except ribosomes, and has its genetic material in the form of single continuous strands forming coils or loops, characteristic of all organisms in the kingdom Monera, as the bacteria and blue-green algae.

Compare eukaryote.

Origin of prokaryote

taken as singular of New Latin Prokaryota, earlier Procaryotes (1925); see pro-¹, eukaryote

Related forms

pro·kar·y·ot·ic

[proh-kar-ee-ot-ik] /proʊˌkær iˈɒt ɪk/, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for procaryote (1 of 2)

procaryote

/ (prəʊˈkærɪɒt) /

noun

a variant spelling of prokaryote

British Dictionary definitions for procaryote (2 of 2)

prokaryote

procaryote

/ (prəʊˈkærɪɒt) /

noun

any organism having cells in each of which the genetic material is in a single DNA chain, not enclosed in a nucleus. Bacteria and archaeans are prokaryotesCompare eukaryote

Derived Forms

prokaryotic or procaryotic (prəʊˌkærɪˈɒtɪk), adjective

Word Origin for prokaryote

from pro- ² + karyo- + -ote as in zygote

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

Medicine definitions for procaryote (1 of 2)

procaryote

[ prō-kăr′ē-ōt′ ]

n.

Variant ofprokaryote

Related forms

pro′car•y•ot′ic (-ŏt′ĭk) adj.

Medicine definitions for procaryote (2 of 2)

prokaryote

n.

An organism of the kingdom Prokaryotae, constituting the bacteria and cyanobacteria, characterized by the absence of a nuclear membrane and by DNA that is not organized into chromosomes.

Related forms

pro•kar′y•ot′ic (-ŏt′ĭk) adj.

Science definitions for procaryote

prokaryote

[ prō-kăr′ē-ōt′ ]

Any of a wide variety of one-celled organisms of the kingdom Monera (or Prokaryota) that are the most primitive and ancient known forms of life. Prokaryotes lack a distinct cell nucleus and their DNA is not organized into chromosomes. They also lack the internal structures bound by membranes called organelles, such as mitochondria. At the molecular level, prokaryotes differ from eukaryotes in the structure of their lipids and of certain metabolic enzymes, and in how genes are expressed for protein synthesis. Prokaryotes reproduce asexually and include the bacteria and blue-green algae. Also called moneran Compare eukaryote. See Table at taxonomy.