SINGLE-CELLED

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does single-celled mean? 

• SINGLE-CELLED (adjective)
  The adjective SINGLE-CELLED has 1 sense:

1. having a single cell (and thus not divided into cells)

  Familiarity information: SINGLE-CELLED used as an adjective is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SINGLE-CELLED (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Having a single cell (and thus not divided into cells)

Synonyms:

one-celled; single-celled

Similar:

acellular; noncellular (not made up of or divided into cells)

 Context examples 

Diatoms are single-celled algae that generate about 20% of the Earth’s oxygen.

(Algae-killing viruses spur nutrient recycling in oceans, National Science Foundation)

Single-celled animals that live near the sediment water interface and have calcium carbonate skeletons.

(Benthic Foraminifera, NOAA Paleoclimate Glossary)

The team first tested cycles of prolonged fasting in yeast, a single-celled organism.

(Health Effects of a Diet that Mimics Fasting, NIH)

Single-celled organisms lacking nuclei, similar to prokaryotes in most aspects of cell structure and metabolism.

(Archaea, NCI Thesaurus)

Some single-celled creatures have structures called motile cilia that beat rhythmically to allow the cells to move.

(Protein critical to cilia development, NIH)

Microbial species are forms of life too small to be seen with the naked eye, including single-celled organisms such as bacteria and archaea, as well as certain fungi.

(Researchers find that Earth may be home to 1 trillion species, NSF)