replication

American  

[rep-li-key-shuhn] / ˌrɛp lɪˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

• replications
  plural

1. a reply; answer.

2. a reply to an answer.

3. Law. the reply of the plaintiff or complainant to the defendant's plea or answer.

4. reverberation; echo.

5. a copy.

6. the act or process of replicating, especially for experimental purposes.

7. Genetics. semiconservative replication.

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replication British  

/ ˌrɛplɪˈkeɪʃən /

noun

1. a reply or response

2. law (formerly) the plaintiff's reply to a defendant's answer or plea

3. biology the production of exact copies of complex molecules, such as DNA molecules, that occurs during growth of living organisms

4. repetition of a procedure, such as a scientific experiment, in order to reduce errors

5. a less common word for replica

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonreplication
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• replications
  plural

Etymology

Origin of replication

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English replicacioun, from Middle French replication, from Latin replicātiōn- (stem of replicātiō ) “a rolling back,” equivalent to replicāt(us) + -iōn- suffix forming nouns; see origin at replicate, -ion

Explanation

If you make a copy of something, like a form or a picture, you have made a replication of it. You might need to mail in a replication of your tax forms when you apply for college financial aid. When you conduct an experiment, you have to repeat it several times to verify that your hypothesis is correct. Each repetition is one replication. A witty retort to a comment or question is also called a replication. Your replications to the teacher's questions may make your classmates laugh, but your smart mouth is bound to get you in trouble eventually.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

replication replications

So singular that it all but defies any kind of tea-leaf-reading or, heaven forbid, attempts at replication.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

The virus may then use those proteins to support its own replication.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026

There’s little airtight data on the fathering brain; cohorts are small; some results await replication while others confound analysis.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026

A turquoise William Turnbull sculpture is between them, and another sculpture by Henry Moore is in the background, a seeming replication of Marcia’s stiff stance in her bright pink, floor-length dress.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026

To Watson and Crick, the double-helix model of DNA—with two complementary “yin-yang” strands counterposed against each other—instantly suggested a mechanism for replication.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

But replications take time and effort and the experiments are resource-intensive and cannot happen overnight.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 29, 2026

Science is cumulative, and replications build its comprehensive and credible body.

From Scientific American ● Jul. 10, 2023

Kiernan’s direction, however, imbues the production with an unsettling feeling: The actresses mirror each other in ways that aren’t always exact replications but rather variations on themes.

From New York Times ● Feb. 23, 2022

Other replications yielded mixed results, and some were negative or inconclusive.

From Science Magazine ● Dec. 7, 2021

By my troth, ye will anger me: now ye have the pattern, ye should call me nothing but Mistress Sheriff; for I tell you I stand upon my replications.

From A Select Collection of Old English Plays, Volume 8 by William Carew Hazlitt

Related Words

• reproduction