protoplasm

noun

pro·​to·​plasm ˈprō-tə-ˌpla-zəm 

1

: the organized colloidal complex of organic and inorganic substances (such as proteins and water) that constitutes the living nucleus, cytoplasm, plastids, and mitochondria of the cell

2

: cytoplasm

protoplasmic

ˌprō-tə-ˈplaz-mik 

adjective

Did you know?

After the word protoplasm was coined in the mid-19th century for the jellylike material that is the main substance of a cell, it began to be used widely, especially by scientists and others who imagined that the first life-forms must have arisen out of a great seething protoplasmic soup. Since protoplasm includes all the cell's living material, inside and outside the nucleus, it is a less useful scientific word today than more precise terms such as cytoplasm, which refers only to the living material outside the nucleus. But many remain fascinated by the image of that soup bubbling away as the lightning flashes and the volcanoes erupt.

Examples of protoplasm in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The bulbous clay forms, dotted with cell-like ovals, suggest protoplasm in a state of continual remaking. —Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 18 Aug. 2023

Munch believed that the cells and protoplasm in blood were connected to the earth. —Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 22 June 2023

Each tube has virtual protoplasm flowing through it, just as the branches of the slime mould do. —Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 22 Jan. 2010

On a computer screen that shows the display from the microscope, Trichoplax looks like a glowing, pulsing orb surrounded by cosmic protoplasm. —Emily Underwood, The Atlantic, 8 June 2020

Altmann believed that cells themselves came into existence when these granules assembled into colonies and built a shelter of protoplasm around themselves. —Carl Zimmer, STAT, 30 May 2018

Responding to a moldy sack of protoplasm who writes for the Daily Caller, CNN editor Chris Cillizza leapt to Jacobs’s defense. —Brian Beutler, New Republic, 26 May 2017

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Word History

Etymology

German Protoplasma, from prot- + New Latin plasma

First Known Use

1848, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

protoplasm

noun

pro·​to·​plasm ˈprōt-ə-ˌplaz-əm 

: a mixture of various organic and inorganic substances (as proteins and water) that makes up the living nucleus, cytoplasm, plastids, and mitochondria of the cell and is considered the physical basis of life

protoplasmic

ˌprōt-ə-ˈplaz-mik 

adjective

Medical Definition

protoplasm

noun

pro·​to·​plasm ˈprōt-ə-ˌplaz-əm 

1

: the organized colloidal complex of organic and inorganic substances (as proteins and water) that constitutes the living nucleus, cytoplasm, plastids, and mitochondria of the cell and is regarded as the only form of matter in which the vital phenomena (as metabolism and reproduction) are manifested

2

: cytoplasm