Meaning & use
gelatin
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Meanings
noununcountable
A clear, tasteless protein substance made by boiling animal bones and skin, used to make jelly and other foods set firm.
Grammar: No plural and no 'a' before it: you use some gelatin, a packet of gelatin.
Patterns
- make something with gelatin
- a packet of gelatin
- dissolve the gelatin in water
The dessert is made with fruit juice and gelatin.
Soak the gelatin in cold water before you add it to the hot liquid.
Vegetarians often avoid sweets that contain gelatin.
noununcountabletechnical
A powder or thin sheet of this substance sold for cooking, or a similar substance used in industry and medicine.
Grammar: Also uncountable when it means the product you buy; for one sheet say 'a sheet of gelatin'.
Patterns
- powdered gelatin
- gelatin capsules
- a sheet of gelatin
She sprinkled powdered gelatin over the mixture and stirred.
Some medicines come in gelatin capsules.
The laboratory uses gelatin to grow bacteria.
Common combinations
- gelatin dessert
- We had a bright red gelatin dessert after lunch.
- dissolve gelatin
- Dissolve the gelatin completely or the jelly will be lumpy.
- gelatin powder
- Keep the gelatin powder in a dry cupboard.
- a layer of gelatin
- A thin layer of gelatin formed on top of the soup as it cooled.
- gelatin capsule
- The vitamin comes in a gelatin capsule.
Synonyms and how they differ
- jelly
- In British English 'jelly' is the finished sweet food, while gelatin is the setting substance used to make it.
- agar
- Agar is a setting substance from seaweed, so it is the usual choice for vegetarians instead of gelatin.
Word family
- gelatinous adjective
- thick and soft like jelly, used especially about liquids or tissue
- gel noun
- a soft, semi-solid substance, often made with a similar setting agent
- jell verb
- to set into a soft solid, or, informally, to take a clear shape
Commonly confused: gelatin or gelatine? gelatin or gel?
gelatin vs gelatine
This is the usual British spelling of the same word; American English uses 'gelatin'. Both are correct in their own variety.
gelatin vs gel
Gel is the soft solid itself, while gelatin is the protein used to make such substances set.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'gelatin' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Gelatin' is uncountable, so 'some gelatin' is correct. 'A gelatin' and a plural verb are wrong because the word has no plural, and 'gelatin' is not a verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “gelatin”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.