cell-dividing
|cell-di-vid-ing|
/ˈsɛlˌdɪvaɪdɪŋ/
cell undergoing division
Etymology
'cell-dividing' is a Modern English compound formed from 'cell' + the present participle 'dividing' (from the verb 'divide').
'cell' originates from Latin 'cella' meaning 'small room' (via Old French/Medieval Latin into English), and 'divide' comes from Latin 'dividere' meaning 'to force apart' or 'separate'; the present participle 'dividing' developed through regular English verb formation, and the compound 'cell-dividing' is a modern descriptive formation combining the two.
Individually, 'cell' originally meant 'small room' and 'divide' meant 'to separate'; combined as 'cell-dividing' the phrase has the specific biological sense 'undergoing cell division.'
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
describing cells that are in the process of dividing (undergoing cell division).
The microscope slide showed several cell-dividing regions in the tissue sample.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/08/29 01:49