neurotransmitter

American  

[noor-oh-trans-mit-er, -tranz-, nyoor-] / ˌnʊər oʊˈtræns mɪt ər, -ˈtrænz-, ˌnjʊər- /

noun

1. any of several chemical substances, as epinephrine or acetylcholine, that transmit nerve impulses across a synapse to a postsynaptic element, as another nerve, muscle, or gland.

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neurotransmitter British  

/ ˌnjʊərəʊtrænzˈmɪtə /

noun

1. a chemical by which a nerve cell communicates with another nerve cell or with a muscle

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neurotransmitter Scientific  

/ nr′ō-trănz′mĭt-ər /

1. A chemical substance that is produced and secreted by a neuron and then diffuses across a synapse to cause excitation or inhibition of another neuron. Acetylcholine, norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin are examples of neurotransmitters.

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neurotransmitter Cultural  

1. Any one of a number of chemicals that are used to transmit nerve signals across a synapse. They are sprayed from the end of the “upstream” nerve cell and absorbed by receptors in the “downstream” cell.

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Discover More

Drugs like Prozac and alcohol affect the emission and reception of neurotransmitters.

Etymology

Origin of neurotransmitter

First recorded in 1960–65; neuro- + transmitter

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

neurotransmitter

Among the most important came from Arvid Carlsson’s work establishing dopamine as a major neurotransmitter.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

By 1970, as a professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Dr. Snyder had devoted himself to identifying the brain receptor for the neurotransmitter dopamine.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Using induced pluripotent stem cells from people with Alzheimer's disease and healthy individuals, the team created hindbrain organoids containing specialized brain cells, or neurons, that produce the neurotransmitter serotonin.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 22, 2026

To test whether acetylcholine was truly responsible for this behavioral flexibility, the team reduced the animals' ability to produce the neurotransmitter.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 8, 2026

There the electrical impulse is converted into a chemical neurotransmitter to float across the synapse to the next neuron.

From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman