Meaning & use
mucoid
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Meaning
adjectivebefore a nounmedical
Looking or feeling like mucus, or made partly of it; thick, slippery and sticky.
Grammar: Usually comes before a noun: mucoid discharge, not the discharge is mucoid.
Patterns
- mucoid sputum
- a mucoid layer
The nurse noted a mucoid discharge from the patient's nose.
Under the microscope, the sample appeared pale and mucoid.
Some bacteria form mucoid colonies on a laboratory plate.
Common combinations
- mucoid discharge
- A clear, mucoid discharge is common during a cold.
- mucoid secretion
- The glands produce a mucoid secretion that protects the stomach lining.
- mucoid colony
- The mucoid colony looked wet and glossy on the dish.
- mucoid sputum
- She coughed up mucoid sputum for several days.
- mucoid stool
- Mucoid stool in a baby should be mentioned to a doctor.
Synonyms and how they differ
- slimy
- Slimy is an everyday word that often sounds unpleasant, while mucoid is neutral and clinical.
- mucous
- Mucous describes things that produce or relate to mucus, as in a mucous membrane, whereas mucoid describes things that merely resemble it.
- viscous
- Viscous means thick and slow-flowing for any liquid, but it does not suggest mucus in particular.
Opposites
Word family
- mucus noun
- the slippery substance produced in the nose, throat and other body passages
- mucous adjective
- relating to or producing mucus
- mucosa noun
- the moist membrane lining body cavities
- mucilage noun
- a sticky substance produced by plants
Commonly confused: mucoid or mucous?
mucoid vs mucous
Mucous is the adjective for things connected with mucus (mucous membrane); mucus is the noun. Mucoid means similar to mucus.
Practice
A doctor describes a sample as thick, slippery and similar to mucus. Which word fits best?
Choose one answer.
Mucoid means resembling mucus. Brittle and granular describe dry, hard textures, and viscid-free is not a real description of this texture.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “mucoid”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.