hemagglutinin

noun

hem·​ag·​glu·​ti·​nin ˌhē-mə-ˈglü-tə-nən 

: an agglutinin (such as an antibody or viral capsid protein) that causes hemagglutination

Examples of hemagglutinin in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Therefore, hemagglutinins have the ability to cause red blood cells to clump together. — Mark Kortepeter, Forbes, 25 Dec. 2024

Many influenza viruses are identified by two classes of proteins that appear on their outer shells, hemagglutinin and neuraminidase. — Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 24 Nov. 2025

Flu viruses are classified based on two proteins that sit on the surface of the virus an H, or hemagglutinin, protein, and an N, or neuraminidase, protein. — Carma Hassan, CNN, 7 Sep. 2024

But hemagglutinin isn't just protein; the protein becomes partly covered in sugar molecules borrowed from the host cell (known as glycosylation), which act as a type of camouflage for the virus. — New Atlas, 5 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

International Scientific Vocabulary

First Known Use

circa 1903, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hemagglutinin

• agglutinin
• phytohemagglutinin

Medical Definition

hemagglutinin

noun

hem·​ag·​glu·​ti·​nin ˌhē-mə-ˈglüt-ᵊn-ən 

variants also hemoagglutinin

ˌhē-mō-ə- 

or chiefly British haemagglutinin also haemoagglutinin

: an agglutinin (as an antibody or viral capsid protein) that causes hemagglutination

—abbreviation HA compare leukoagglutinin