Meaning & use
kinesis
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Meanings
noununcountablebiologytechnical
A change in how fast or how often an organism moves in response to something in its surroundings, with no set direction.
Grammar: Usually used without an article; the plural is kineses.
Patterns
- kinesis in response to something
- kinesis in an organism
Woodlice show kinesis by moving faster in dry air and slowing down in damp air.
The experiment measured kinesis in the insects as the light grew brighter.
Unlike taxis, kinesis does not send the animal toward or away from the stimulus.
noununcountabletechnicalrare
Movement or motion in general, used in scientific and medical writing.
Grammar: Rare outside technical use; often seen in compounds like telekinesis.
Patterns
- kinesis of something
The study looked at the kinesis of the joint during walking.
Doctors compared the kinesis of both hands after the injury.
Word forms
| plural | kineses |
|---|
Common combinations
- orthokinesis
- Orthokinesis changes an animal's speed according to how strong the stimulus is.
- klinokinesis
- Klinokinesis makes an animal turn more often in an unpleasant area.
- show kinesis
- Many small invertebrates show kinesis in response to humidity.
- kinesis and taxis
- A biology class often compares kinesis and taxis.
Synonyms and how they differ
- movement
- Movement is the general everyday word, while kinesis is a technical term for a specific kind of reaction.
- motion
- Motion describes any change of position, and has no link to stimuli like kinesis does.
- locomotion
- Locomotion means moving from place to place, not necessarily in response to anything.
Opposites
Word family
- kinetic adjective
- relating to or caused by motion
- telekinesis noun
- the supposed power to move objects with the mind
- kinesiology noun
- the study of human body movement
- kinesthetic adjective
- relating to the sense of body movement
Commonly confused: kinesis or taxis?
kinesis vs taxis
Taxis is movement directly toward or away from a stimulus. Kinesis changes the speed or turning of movement but has no set direction.
Practice
A woodlouse speeds up in dry air but moves randomly, with no clear direction. This is an example of:
Choose one answer.
Kinesis is a change in speed or turning in response to a stimulus, with no direction. Taxis would involve moving directly toward or away from it.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “kinesis”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.