NITROGEN CYCLE

Pronunciation (US):

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does nitrogen cycle mean? 

• NITROGEN CYCLE (noun)
  The noun NITROGEN CYCLE has 1 sense:

1. the circulation of nitrogen; nitrates from the soil are absorbed by plants which are eaten by animals that die and decay returning the nitrogen back to the soil

  Familiarity information: NITROGEN CYCLE used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• NITROGEN CYCLE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The circulation of nitrogen; nitrates from the soil are absorbed by plants which are eaten by animals that die and decay returning the nitrogen back to the soil

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural processes

Hypernyms ("nitrogen cycle" is a kind of...):

biological process; organic process (a process occurring in living organisms)

 Context examples 

Indeed, it turned out that these invertebrates, especially lobsters and sea stars, are an important part of the nitrogen cycle in coastal ecosystems.

(In search of an undersea kelp forest's missing nitrogen, National Science Foundation)