self-replicating
Americanadjective
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reproducing itself by its own power or inherent nature.
self-replicating organisms.
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Genetics. making an exact copy or copies of itself, as a strand of DNA.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of self-replicating
First recorded in 1955–60
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Is it control of self-replicating armies of autonomous drones, or a cancer-free utopia that hits Type II on the Kardashev scale?
From Salon ● Sep. 16, 2026
The theory may also have relevance for future self-replicating AI systems.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 25, 2026
It goes on, and on, and on, self-replicating in the infinite scroll.
From Slate ● Apr. 13, 2026
For instance, in a series of experiments in the 2010s, geneticist J. Craig Venter and his team successfully transplanted synthetic genomes into hollowed-out Mycoplasma bacteria to create designer self-replicating bacterial cells.
From Scientific American ● Apr. 6, 2023
I deposited Laleh in the kitchen with Mamou, who tried to feed Sohrab more Nowruz leftovers—it seemed they were self-replicating, and we might never run out—before we left again.
From "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" by Adib Khorram
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
