fat cell

noun

: a specialized cell of adipose tissue that stores excess energy in the form of triglyceride droplets : adipocyte

When food is not available and insulin levels fall, the fat cells release triglycerides back into the bloodstream, where they are transported to the liver and broken down into ketones, which can serve as fuel for muscle and the brain.

—Jeffrey S. Flier et al.

Cellulite is formed by a collection of fat cells around the fibrous cords that attach skin to muscle.

—Jeannie Ralston

Examples of fat cell in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

These beige fat cells can then convert back to white fat cells when summer comes again. —Bethany Brookshire, Scientific American, 27 Mar. 2025

Blocking a protein called CD44 has been shown to protect against obesity in mice on a high-fat diet, specifically by suppressing the formation of white fat cells. —Michael Irving, New Atlas, 27 Feb. 2025

The team found that CD44 deficiency reduced serotonin levels in white fat tissue, which impaired the formation of new white fat cells. —Michael Irving, New Atlas, 27 Feb. 2025

Also, people who ate later in the day stored more fat cells. —Amber J. Tresca, Verywell Health, 16 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1840, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for fat cell

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

Kids Definition

fat cell

noun

: any of the fat-containing cells that make up the connective tissue in which bodily fat is stored

Medical Definition

fat cell

noun

: a specialized cell of adipose tissue that stores excess energy in the form of triglyceride droplets : adipocyte

When food is not available and insulin levels fall, the fat cells release triglycerides back into the bloodstream, where they are transported to the liver and broken down into ketones, which can serve as fuel for muscle and the brain.

—Jeffrey S. Flier et al.

compare lipocyte