Meaning & use
intracellular
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Meaning
adjectivebefore a nountechnicalbiology
Located or happening inside a cell.
Grammar: Used before a noun: intracellular fluid, intracellular signaling.
Patterns
- intracellular + noun
Calcium ions play a key role in intracellular signaling.
The parasite survives in an intracellular environment.
Researchers measured the intracellular concentration of the drug.
Common combinations
- intracellular fluid
- Intracellular fluid makes up about two-thirds of the body's water.
- intracellular signaling
- The receptor triggers a cascade of intracellular signaling.
- intracellular parasite
- Malaria is caused by an intracellular parasite.
- intracellular concentration
- They compared the intracellular concentration of sodium.
Synonyms and how they differ
- inside cells
- A plain phrase used in everyday writing; intracellular is the technical term.
Opposites
Word family
- cell noun
- The basic unit of living things.
- cellular adjective
- Relating to cells.
- extracellular adjective
- Located outside a cell.
Commonly confused: intracellular or intercellular?
intracellular vs intercellular
Intercellular means between cells, while intracellular means inside a single cell.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'intracellular' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Intracellular means inside a cell, so 'intracellular environment of the host cell' is correct. Option A uses 'intracellular' for the space between cells, which should be 'intercellular'. Option C describes the outside of the cell, which is extracellular. Option D also refers to outside the cell.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “intracellular”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.