cell suicide

noun

variants or less commonly cellular suicide
: apoptosis

Examples of cell suicide in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Blebs signal cell suicide; when stressed cells start chopping up their own proteins, their membranes distend. — Laura Mallonee, Wired, 19 May 2020 Perhaps the mechanism that drives cell suicide will evolve a more sophisticated function. — Quanta Magazine, 3 Nov. 2015 Cells use a variety of ways to eliminate their rivals, from kicking them out of a tissue to inducing cell suicide or even engulfing them and cannibalizing their components. — Kendall Powell, Scientific American, 22 Jan. 2020 There were also some dubious pieces of visual evidence that ended up on the DOJ website, including a clearly fake video of Epstein's jail-cell suicide that was uploaded and later removed. — Kyler Alvord, PEOPLE, 29 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1980, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cell suicide was in 1980

Rhymes for cell suicide

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Browse Nearby Words

cell sap
cell suicide
cell theory
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Cite this Entry

“Cell suicide.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cell%20suicide. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Medical Definition

cell suicide

noun
variants also cellular suicide
: apoptosis
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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