programmed cell death
noun
Simple meaning
A type of cell death in which the cell uses specialized cellular machinery to kill itself.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
prohgramdseldethSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈpɹoʊɡɹæmdsɛldɛθ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A type of cell death in which the cell uses specialized cellular machinery to kill itself; a cell suicide mechanism that enables metazoans to control cell number and eliminate cells that threaten the animal's survival
biology
The regulated death of a cell, mediated by an intracellular program.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
This meaning: A type of cell death in which the cell uses specialized cellular machinery to kill itself; a cell suicide mechanism that enables metazoans to control cell number and eliminate cells that threaten the animal's survival
Used this way, programmed cell death is a specialist word carrying real weight of difficulty or hurt. It carries more force than its gentler alternatives. This is a scientific use: it names something precisely within a field of study, so it appears in research and teaching more than in conversation.
- Emotional tone
- Strongly negative
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Strong
- How common
- Specialized
- Connotation
- Serious and weighty
- Usage feel
- Clinical and detached
Where it naturally appears
- Science
- Academic writing
- Technical/specialist writing
Usage note
In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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