cell

noun

ˈsel 

1

a

: a single room (as in a convent or prison) usually for one person

b

: a one-room dwelling occupied by a solitary person (such as a hermit)

2

: a basic and usually small unit of an organization or movement

terrorist cells

3

a

: cell phone

b

: any of the small sections of a geographic area of a cellular (see cellular entry 1 sense 3) telephone system

4

: a small compartment, cavity, or bounded space: such as

a

: one of the compartments of a honeycomb

b

: a membranous area bounded by veins in the wing of an insect

5

: a small usually microscopic mass of protoplasm bounded externally by a semipermeable membrane, usually including one or more nuclei and various other organelles with their products, capable alone or interacting with other cells of performing all the fundamental functions of life, and forming the smallest structural unit of living matter capable of functioning independently

6

a(1)

: a receptacle containing electrodes and an electrolyte either for generating electricity by chemical action or for use in electrolysis

(2)

: fuel cell

b

: a single unit in a device for converting radiant energy into electrical energy or for varying the intensity of an electrical current in accordance with radiation (see radiation sense 1)

7

: a unit in a statistical array (see array entry 2 sense 5) (such as a spreadsheet) formed by the intersection of a column and a row

8

: a portion of the atmosphere that behaves as a unit

a storm cell

9

: a small religious house dependent on a monastery or convent

Illustration of cell

• A plant
• B animal
• 1 cell wall
• 2 middle lamella
• 3 plasma membrane
• 4 mitochondrion
• 5 vacuole
• 6 Golgi apparatus
• 7 cytoplasm
• 8 nuclear membrane
• 9 nucleolus
• 10 nucleus
• 11 chromatin
• 12 endoplasmic reticulum with associated ribosomes
• 13 chloroplast
• 14 centriole
• 15 lysosome

Synonyms

• apartment
• chamber
• closet
• room

Examples of cell in a Sentence

The suspect was in the police station's holding cell overnight.

his mission was to locate and infiltrate the terrorist cell that was believed to be hiding in the city

Recent Examples on the Web

Season 3 kicks off with Georgia (Brianne Howey) in a holding cell on charges of murdering Tom (Vincent Legault). —Emily Krauser, People.com, 7 June 2025

Nearly 50 men spent hours in a small holding cell asking for water, food and medication. —Verónica Egui Brito, Miami Herald, 7 June 2025

Gut hormones are chemical messengers made by special cells in the digestive tract that help control digestive functions. —Paul Von Zielbauer, Los Angeles Times, 6 June 2025

My prediction: at the end of this, one of them’s in a cell with Diddy. —Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 6 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English, religious house and Anglo-French celle hermit's cell, from Latin cella small room; akin to Latin celare to conceal — more at hell

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 9

Phrases Containing cell

• AAA cell
• AA cell
• antigen-presenting cell
• basal cell
• B cell
• beta cell
• blood cell
• cell biology
• cell body
• cell cycle
• cell division
• cell foam
• cell line
• cell lot
• cell mate
• cell-mediated
• cell membrane
• cell phone
• cell phone lot
• cell phone parking lot
• cell plate
• cell respiration
• cell sap
• cell suicide
• cell theory
• cell wall
• closed-cell
• closed cell foam
• collar cell
• companion cell
• cytolytic T cell
• cytotoxic T cell
• dendritic cell
• dry cell
• effector cell
• egg cell
• fat cell
• flame cell
• foam cell
• fuel cell
• generative cell
• germ cell
• goblet cell
• granulosa cell
• guard cell
• Hadley cell
• hair cell
• hairy cell leukemia
• HeLa cell
• helper T cell
• host cell
• inter-cell
• killer cell
• killer T cell
• Langerhans cell
• mast cell
• mastoid cell
• mother cell
• multi-cell
• natural killer cell
• nerve cell
• NK cell
• oat cell
• open cell foam
• padded cell
• palisade cell
• parietal cell
• photoelectric cell
• plasma cell
• pollen mother cell
• primary cell
• programmed cell death
• Purkinje cell
• red blood cell
• red cell
• Schwann cell
• secondary cell
• selenium cell
• Sertoli cell
• sex cell
• sickle cell
• sickle cell anemia
• sickle-cell trait
• sleeper cell
• small-cell lung cancer
• solar cell
• somatic cell
• sperm cell
• spindle cell
• squamous cell
• squamous cell carcinoma
• stem cell
• stone cell
• suppressor T cell
• sustentacular cell
• T cell
• T cell receptor
• T helper cell
• unit cell
• white blood cell
• white cell

Rhymes for cell

• bel
• belle
• cel
• dell
• dwell
• el
• ell
• fel
• fell
• gel
• gell
• jell

Kids Definition

cell

noun

ˈsel 

1

: a very small room (as in a convent or prison) usually for one person

2

: a small compartment, cavity, or bounded space

the cells in a honeycomb often contain honey

3

: one of the tiny units that are the basic building blocks of living things, that carry on the basic functions of life either alone or in groups, and that include a nucleus and are surrounded by a membrane

4

a

: a container (as a jar) with electrodes and an electrolyte either for generating electricity by chemical action or for use in electrolysis

b

: a single unit in a device for changing radiant energy into electrical energy

5

: cell phone

celled

ˈseld

adjective

Medical Definition

cell

noun

ˈsel 

1

: a small compartment or bounded space

2

: a small usually microscopic mass of protoplasm bounded externally by a semipermeable membrane, usually including one or more nuclei and various nonliving products, capable alone or interacting with other cells of performing all the fundamental functions of life, and forming the smallest structural unit of living matter capable of functioning independently