Meaning of nucleus in English

nucleus

noun [ C ]

/ˈnjuː.kli.əs/ us

/ˈnuː.kli.əs/

plural nuclei uk/ˈnjuː.kli.aɪ/ us/ˈnuː.kli.aɪ/ nucleuses

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physics specialized

the central part of an atom, usually made up of protons and neutrons

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biology specialized

the part of a cell that controls its growth:

DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell.

CHRISTOPH BURGSTEDT/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY/GettyImages

the nucleus of something

the group of people or things that are the most important part of something:

These three players will form the nucleus of a revised and stronger team.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Cells

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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Physics: atoms, molecules & sub-atomic particles

(Definition of nucleus from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

nucleus | American Dictionary

nucleus

noun [ C ]

/ˈnu·kli·əs/

plural nuclei us/ˈnu·kliˌɑɪ/

Add to word list Add to word list

the central part of something

People or things that form the nucleus of something are the most important part of it:

These two people will form the nucleus of a new management team to promote sales in South America.

physics

A nucleus is the central part of an atom.

biology

A nucleus is the central part of a cell that controls its growth.

(Definition of nucleus from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of nucleus

nucleus

On the definitions in (1a.ii) and (1b.ii), when it appears that a language is counting codas, what in fact is being counted are empty nuclei.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

To account for these restrictions, we propose that laryngeal features are properties not of segments, but of the onsets, nuclei and codas that dominate them.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The caudate nuclei and pallidum are equally involved in these circuits.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The irregularity of chromosome separation was displayed as chromosome bridges between daughter nuclei in anaphase and telophase.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Lysed cells were centrifuged at 2500 g for 15 min and the pellet containing unbroken cells, nuclei, and kinetoplasts was discarded.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Remodeling of mouse thymocyte nuclei depends on the time of their transfer into activated, homologous oocytes.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

There was a tendency for development to proceed better in embryos carrying homologous as compared with heterologous nuclei.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The analytical modelling permits inclusion of other potential feedback loops through nuclei displaying similar characteristics.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Notably, these thalamic reductions were localized largely in the segment associated with the paramedian nuclei.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

By use of phase contrast optics, the borders of the surrounding nuclei could be determined and the numbers of labeled cells within each area defined.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Trichinella spiralis : antigenic epitopes from the stichocytes detected in the hypertrophic nuclei and cytoplasm of the parasitized muscle fibre (nurse cell) of the host.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The notion of increased random activity or noise in specific thalamic nuclei may explain this apparent paradox.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Both empirical fields are represented and controlled by the same objects : filled and empty onsets and nuclei.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

A puncture mark was made on the contralateral side of the brain to distinguish the injured and non-injured nuclei.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

In the high temperature limit, the equation of state has the asymptotic behavior of ideal fully ionized plasma consisting of electrons and nuclei.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

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These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with nucleus

nucleus

These are words often used in combination with nucleus.

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active nucleus

The branch has become the forum not of the rank and file but of an active nucleus dominated by a hard core centre.

From the

Hansard archive

Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0

caudate nucleus

Translating, when compared to reading, activated mainly the anterior cingulate and bilateral subcortical structures (the putamen and the head of the caudate nucleus).

From the Cambridge English Corpus

comet nucleus

The impact crater that would have decided between a gravity-dominated versus a strength-dominated comet nucleus was not seen because so much dust was kicked up from the regolith.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

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What is the pronunciation of nucleus?

What is the pronunciation of nuclei?