adenine

noun

ad·​e·​nine ˈa-də-ˌnēn 

: a purine base C₅H₅N₅ that codes hereditary information in the genetic code in DNA and RNA compare cytosine, guanine, thymine, uracil

Examples of adenine in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

There are four different bases: adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), and thymine (T). —IEEE Spectrum, 2 Oct. 2025

Biology’s four bases—adenine (A), thymine (T), cytosine (C) and guanine (G)—encode the instructions that keep life alive. —Andrew Whalen, Forbes.com, 9 July 2025

The deletion of a single DNA base (an adenine) shifts the frame of the three-sequence protein code for the rest of EspW. —Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 14 May 2025

The metaphor leaps out: Like letters of the alphabet, molecules (the nucleotide bases A, T, C and G, for adenine, thymine, cytosine and guanine) are arranged into sequences — words, paragraphs, chapters, perhaps — in every organism, from bacteria to humans. —Ingrid Wickelgren, Quanta Magazine, 5 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from German Adenin, from Greek aden-, adḗn "gland" + German -in -ine entry 2; so called from its presence in glandular tissue — more at adeno-

First Known Use

1885, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing adenine

• flavin adenine dinucleotide
• nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide
• nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate

Rhymes for adenine

• acrolein
• alkylene
• aniline
• anthracene
• aquiline
• asphaltene
• atlantean
• atrazine
• butadiene
• butylene
• caesarean
• carnitine

Kids Definition

adenine

noun

ad·​e·​nine ˈad-ᵊn-ēn 

: one of the bases which make up the genetic code of DNA and RNA compare cytosine, guanine, thymine, uracil

Medical Definition

adenine

noun

ad·​e·​nine ˈad-ᵊn-ˌēn 

: a purine base C₅H₅N₅ that codes hereditary information in the genetic code in DNA and RNA compare cytosine, guanine, thymine, uracil