Definition Definition

nucleus - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'nucleus' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Nucleus [ n.]
- A kernel; hence, a central mass or point about which matter is gathered, or to which accretion is made; the central or material portion; -- used both literally and figuratively.
- The body or the head of a comet.
- An incipient ovule of soft cellular tissue.
- A whole seed, as contained within the seed coats.
- A body, usually spheroidal, in a cell or a protozoan, distinguished from the surrounding protoplasm by a difference in refrangibility and in behavior towards chemical reagents. It is more or less protoplasmic, and consists of a clear fluid (achromatin) through which extends a network of fibers (chromatin) in which may be suspended a second rounded body, the nucleolus (see Nucleoplasm). See Cell division, under Division.
- The tip, or earliest part, of a univalve or bivalve shell.
- The central part around which additional growths are added, as of an operculum.
- A visceral mass, containing the stomach and other organs, in Tunicata and some mollusks.

Meaning of 'nucleus' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . nucleus [ n]
Meaning (1):
- a small group of indispensable persons or things
Example in sentence:
  • five periodicals make up the core of their publishing program