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conjugate

Syllabification: (con·ju·gate)
Translate conjugate | into French | into German | into Italian
Definition of conjugate

verb

Pronunciation: /ˈkänjəˌgāt/

  • 1 [with object] Grammar give the different forms of (a verb in an inflected language) as they vary according to voice, mood, tense, number, and person.
  • 2 [no object] Biology (of bacteria or unicellular organisms) become temporarily united in order to exchange genetic material:E. coli only conjugate when one of the cells possesses fertility genes
  • (of gametes) become fused.
  • 3 [with object] Chemistry be combined with or joined to reversibly:bilirubin is then conjugated by liver enzymes and excreted in the bile

adjective


  • coupled, connected, or related, in particular.
  • Chemistry (of an acid or base) related to the corresponding base or acid by loss or gain of a proton.
  • Mathematics joined in a reciprocal relation, especially having the same real parts and equal magnitudes but opposite signs of imaginary parts. Short for complex conjugate.
  • Geometry (of angles) adding up to 360°; (of arcs) combining to form a complete circle.
  • Biology (especially of gametes) fused.

noun


  • a thing that is conjugate or conjugated, in particular.
  • chiefly Biochemistry a substance formed by the reversible combination of two or more others.
  • a mathematical value or entity having a reciprocal relation with another. See also complex conjugate.

Derivatives

conjugacy

Pronunciation: /ˈkänjəgəsē/

noun

conjugative

Pronunciation: /ˈkänjəˌgātiv/

adjective

Origin:

late 15th century (as an adjective): from Latin conjugat- 'yoked together', from the verb conjugare, from con- 'together' + jugum 'yoke'

conjugate in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of conjugate in the British & World English dictionary