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cell
worm
dance
face
insect
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cell

 
 
pronunciation:
sel
features:
Homophone Note, Word History, Word Explorer
part of speech: noun
definition: Cells are very, very small living things that make up every part of your body. Your skin, your bones, and your muscles, for example, are all made out of cells. Cells are also the building blocks of all other living things. A leaf, a tiger's tooth, a seed, the fur of a dog, an elephant's ear--every living thing you can think of is made out of cells.
Did you know that cells are so small that you can't see them without a microscope?
 
Homophone Note
The words cell and sell sound alike but have different meanings.
Word History
Cell comes from celare, a Latin word that means "to hide." By the 1300s, "cell" meant "small monastery" or "small room." In the late 1300s, it was used for the compartments that the brain was thought to be separated into. The current use of the word "cell" in biology first occurred in 1845.
Word Explorer
grows in cell
includes the study of cells
person who studies cells
some means for categorizing cells
some things composed of cells
some things composed of only one cell
some things found in cells
some tools for studying cells