cellular respiration
noun
variants
or less commonly cell respiration
: any of various energy-yielding oxidative reactions in living matter that typically involve transfer of oxygen and production of carbon dioxide and water as end products
Cellular respiration is a series of reactions, occurring under aerobic conditions, during which large amounts of ATP are produced.—
Teresa Audesirk and Gerald Audesirk
Teresa Audesirk and Gerald AudesirkOne of the primary sources of energy is glucose, the basic building block of starch and many sugars in our diet. Its oxidation in cell respiration can be subdivided into three phases: glycolysis, the Krebs cycle and the system of electron transport.—Pete Moore
Pete MooreExamples of cellular respiration in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The findings, which were published earlier this year in Nature Communications, challenge assumptions about the limits of cellular respiration and may give researchers a model for understanding how life walks the edge of paradise and poison.
—Jake Buehler, Wired News, 31 Aug. 2025
The high levels of prussic acid in the sorghum grass had an intoxicating effect on the cattle, blocking their cellular respiration and effectively suffocating them, Giantin told USA TODAY in an email.
—Isabella Fertel, USA TODAY, 16 June 2023
All animals possess a copy of CO1—many copies, actually—which is critical to cellular respiration.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2023
Your breath has about 100 times more thanks to your cellular respiration, or how your cells break down sugars and oxygen to make energy and CO2.
—Max G. Levy, Wired, 23 Feb. 2022
The superintendent talked a few minutes about cellular respiration — students listened politely — and then shifted into asking about college and career plans.
—Los Angeles Times, 17 Feb. 2022
An additional 30 percent to 50 percent of children with autism show signs of mitochondrial dysfunction, such as abnormal levels of certain byproducts generated by cellular respiration, the process through which ATP is produced.
—Diana Kwon, Discover Magazine, 3 July 2021
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Jake Buehler, Wired News, 31 Aug. 2025
The high levels of prussic acid in the sorghum grass had an intoxicating effect on the cattle, blocking their cellular respiration and effectively suffocating them, Giantin told USA TODAY in an email.
—Isabella Fertel, USA TODAY, 16 June 2023
All animals possess a copy of CO1—many copies, actually—which is critical to cellular respiration.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2023
Your breath has about 100 times more thanks to your cellular respiration, or how your cells break down sugars and oxygen to make energy and CO2.
—Max G. Levy, Wired, 23 Feb. 2022
The superintendent talked a few minutes about cellular respiration — students listened politely — and then shifted into asking about college and career plans.
—Los Angeles Times, 17 Feb. 2022
An additional 30 percent to 50 percent of children with autism show signs of mitochondrial dysfunction, such as abnormal levels of certain byproducts generated by cellular respiration, the process through which ATP is produced.
—Diana Kwon, Discover Magazine, 3 July 2021
Cite this Entry
“Cellular respiration.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cellular%20respiration. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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