Meaning & use
phagocytosis
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Meanings
noununcountablebiology
The process by which a cell wraps itself around a particle, such as a bacterium or debris, and takes it inside to be broken down.
Grammar: No plural in normal use: phagocytosis occurs rapidly.
Patterns
- phagocytosis of something
- phagocytosis by something
Macrophages destroy invading bacteria through phagocytosis.
Phagocytosis of dead cells helps keep tissue clean after an injury.
In the lab, we watched an amoeba carry out phagocytosis on a yeast cell.
noununcountablebiology
In single-celled organisms, the same engulfing process used as a way of feeding on food particles.
Grammar: Used without an article: feeding by phagocytosis.
Patterns
- feed by phagocytosis
Amoebas obtain nutrients by phagocytosis.
Some protozoa rely on phagocytosis rather than absorbing dissolved food.
Textbooks often illustrate phagocytosis with an amoeba surrounding a food particle.
Common combinations
- undergo phagocytosis
- Bacteria coated with antibodies undergo phagocytosis more easily.
- engulf by phagocytosis
- The pathogen was engulfed by phagocytosis.
- phagocytosis of bacteria
- Phagocytosis of bacteria is a first line of defense.
- impair phagocytosis
- Certain drugs can impair phagocytosis in white blood cells.
Synonyms and how they differ
- engulfment
- Engulfment is the general act of surrounding something, while phagocytosis names the specific cell process that includes digestion.
- endocytosis
- Endocytosis is the broader term for any uptake into a cell; phagocytosis is the kind that takes in large solid particles.
Opposites
Word family
- phagocyte noun
- a cell that carries out phagocytosis
- phagocytic adjective
- relating to or able to carry out phagocytosis
- phagocytose verb
- to engulf and digest by phagocytosis
- macrophage noun
- a large white blood cell that engulfs debris and microbes
Commonly confused: phagocytosis or pinocytosis? phagocytosis or photosynthesis?
phagocytosis vs pinocytosis
Pinocytosis is a cell taking in fluid droplets, whereas phagocytosis takes in solid particles.
phagocytosis vs photosynthesis
Photosynthesis is how plants make food from light and has nothing to do with engulfing particles.
Practice
A white blood cell destroys a bacterium by surrounding it and digesting it. This process is called ______.
Choose one answer.
Phagocytosis is engulfing and digesting a particle. Mitosis is cell division, osmosis is water movement across a membrane, and photosynthesis happens in plants.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “phagocytosis”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.