Illustration of DNA
- A molecular model
- 1 hydrogen
- 2 oxygen
- 3 carbon in the helical phosphate ester chains
- 4 carbon and nitrogen in the cross-linked purine and pyrimidine bases
- 5 phosphorus
- B double helix
DNA
noun
: any of various nucleic acids that are usually the molecular basis of heredity, are constructed of a double helix held together by hydrogen bonds between purine and pyrimidine bases (see base entry 1 sense 6b) which project inward from two chains containing alternate links of deoxyribose and phosphate, and that in eukaryotes are localized chiefly in cell nuclei compare recombinant dna
Examples of DNA in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Investigators swabbed the victim’s genitals and made a slide using the DNA, but technology hadn’t advanced enough to process it.
—
Saleen Martin, USA Today, 5 June 2026
The theme is universal, but our series has this Brazilian DNA, our own way of telling this story, our identity.
—Roberto Prieto, Variety, 4 June 2026
Dougherty, who worked as a prosecutor in the Manhattan district attorney’s office before moving to Colorado to head up the DNA Justice Review Project of then-Attorney General John Suthers, a Republican, said Griswold lacks courtroom experience.
—John Aguilar, Denver Post, 4 June 2026
The government said that one swab was 120 sextillion times more likely to include DNA from Kepner and Hudson than from Kepner and an unknown, unrelated person.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 3 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for DNA
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Saleen Martin, USA Today, 5 June 2026
The theme is universal, but our series has this Brazilian DNA, our own way of telling this story, our identity.
—Roberto Prieto, Variety, 4 June 2026
Dougherty, who worked as a prosecutor in the Manhattan district attorney’s office before moving to Colorado to head up the DNA Justice Review Project of then-Attorney General John Suthers, a Republican, said Griswold lacks courtroom experience.
—John Aguilar, Denver Post, 4 June 2026
The government said that one swab was 120 sextillion times more likely to include DNA from Kepner and Hudson than from Kepner and an unknown, unrelated person.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 3 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for DNA
Cite this Entry
“DNA.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/DNA. Accessed 6 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
DNA
noun
: any of various nucleic acids that are located especially in cell nuclei, are usually the chemical basis of heredity, and are composed of two nucleotide chains held together by hydrogen bonds in a pattern resembling a flexible twisted ladder compare rna
Medical Definition
DNA
noun
: any of various nucleic acids that are usually the molecular basis of heredity, are constructed of a double helix held together by hydrogen bonds between purine and pyrimidine bases which project inward from two chains containing alternate links of deoxyribose and phosphate, and that in eukaryotes are localized chiefly in cell nuclei
called also deoxyribonucleic acid
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
