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

Last summer, the first of the animals was implanted with a biohybrid chip, and the company is now tracking its progress and seeing if the stem cells actually grow into the brain. —Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 6 Nov. 2025

Now 26, Paul has undergone a stem cell transplant, completed a 5K, adopted a dog, started a drawing business, relapsed, nearly lost her life to pneumonia in the ICU and left her home in Michigan to move to Houston, Texas, for treatment at MD Anderson Cancer Center. —Jordan Greene, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2025

The researchers are now considering combining Thiorphan with stem cell technology in clinical trials planned for the near future. —Ashley MacKin Solomon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Nov. 2025

Fatty acids were then released into the skin, which acted as a signal for hair stem cells to grow. —Angelica Stabile, FOXNews.com, 2 Nov. 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