stem cell

noun

: an unspecialized cell that gives rise to differentiated cells

hematopoietic stem cells in bone marrow

Examples of stem cell in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The trials, one of which involved 12 patients in the U.S. & Canada and the other involving seven patients in Japan, used stem cells to create the neurons. —Alex Knapp, Forbes.com, 18 Apr. 2025

Restoring those stem cells by growing them in a lab can treat the cell deficiency that gives rise to corneal blood vessel growth, cloudiness and pain, Jurkunas said. —Megan Forrester, ABC News, 9 Apr. 2025

Conventionally it was thought that hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) which produce different types of blood cells were mostly found in the bone marrow, a spongy mass found in the middle of large bones like the legs and hips. —Victoria Forster, Forbes, 15 Mar. 2025

From there, these induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can be coaxed to become whatever cell type is needed for a specific treatment. —Michael Irving, New Atlas, 14 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1896, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for stem cell

• barbell
• bedwell
• befell
• bluebell
• bombshell
• bridewell
• capelle
• cartel
• carvel
• clamshell
• cogswell
• compel

Kids Definition

stem cell

noun

: a simple cell that can become a cell (as a blood cell or skin cell) with a special function

Medical Definition

stem cell

noun

ˈstem- 

: an unspecialized cell capable of perpetuating itself through cell division and having the potential to give rise to differentiated cells with specialized functions

Embryonic stem cells are pluripotent cells derived from the inner cell mass of the blastocyst stage of the embryo.

—Carrie J. Merkle, in Essentials of Pathophysiology

… picture the bone marrow as a blood cell factory that takes a single type of precursor cell, or stem cell, and modifies it in various ways to produce all the cells that circulate in the blood.

—Gina Kolata, Discover

Recent observations are providing increasing evidence for the concept that adult stem cells are part of a natural system for tissue repair.

—Darwin J. Prockop, in Essentials of Stem Cell Biology