axon

noun

ax·​on ˈak-ˌsän How to pronounce axon (audio)
variants or less commonly axone
: a usually long and single nerve-cell process that usually conducts impulses away from the cell body see neuron illustration

Examples of axon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Thousands of tiny neurons run axons — the brain’s transmission cables for electrical impulses — perpendicularly through the stack of dendrites, like threads in a loom. Rebecca Boyle, Quanta Magazine, 24 Jan. 2024 Each axon connects with the dendrites of tens of thousands of Purkinje cells. Rebecca Boyle, Quanta Magazine, 24 Jan. 2024 Restoring sensation involves a different set of axons, Anderson says. Gail Dutton, Discover Magazine, 16 Nov. 2023 Vaibhav Deshmukh Motor neurons grown in microfluidic device for separation of cell bodies (top) and axons (bottom). Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 17 Oct. 2023 This structure gave cells ready access to the gel’s nutrients while mimicking alternating between gray and white matter in the cortex, where gray matter contains neuron cell bodies and white matter contains the long axons connecting them. WIRED, 3 Oct. 2023 The mirror design could prove useful to researchers aiming to trace the path of a mouse’s axons that wind throughout the brain, says Adam Glaser, an engineer at the Allen Institute for Neural Dynamics who is working on brain mapping. Bysara Reardon, science.org, 14 Apr. 2023 Rather than just sending messages from the axon of one neuron to the dendrite of another neuron — which is the typical model of neuronal activity — nearly half the fly's neuronal connectivity involved sending messages axon to axon, dendrite to dendrite, or dendrite to axon. Avery Hurt, Discover Magazine, 17 Apr. 2023 Indeed, every 3-cm increase in axon length is calculated to add more than double the volume of the neuronal cell body to the axon each day. Jeffrey M. Rodgers, Scientific American, 29 Sep. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'axon.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

New Latin axon, from Greek axōn

First Known Use

1895, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of axon was in 1895

Dictionary Entries Near axon

Cite this Entry

“Axon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/axon. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

axon

noun
ax·​on ˈak-ˌsän How to pronounce axon (audio)
variants also axone
: a usually long and single process of a neuron that usually carries impulses away from the cell body compare dendrite sense 2
axonal
ˈak-sən-ᵊl How to pronounce axon (audio)
ak-ˈsän-
-ˈsōn-
adjective

Medical Definition

axon

noun
ax·​on ˈak-ˌsän How to pronounce axon (audio)
variants also axone
: a usually long and single nerve-cell process that usually conducts impulses away from the cell body

More from Merriam-Webster on axon

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