nucleotide

noun

nu·​cle·​o·​tide ˈnü-klē-ə-ˌtīd 

ˈnyü-

: any of several compounds that consist of a ribose or deoxyribose sugar joined to a purine or pyrimidine base and to a phosphate group and that are the basic structural units of nucleic acids (such as RNA and DNA) compare nucleoside

Examples of nucleotide in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Phosphorus is the structural backbone of the phosphate nucleotides in DNA and RNA, Natalie Hinkel, a planetary astrophysicist at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, told me via email. —Bruce Dorminey, Forbes, 20 Jan. 2025

Zoom in: Moderna, in partnership with IBM Research, is experimenting with using quantum computers to predict how messenger RNA molecules fold when nucleotides that aren't next to one another interact. —Alison Snyder, Axios, 2 Jan. 2025

In the absence of the modern proteins that make copies of genes inside cells, the prebiotic world would have relied on simple chemical reactions between nucleotides – the building blocks of genetic material – to make copies of RNA. —Discover Magazine, 17 Oct. 2024

For comparison, an entire human genome contains 3 billion nucleotides. —Michael C. Schatz, IEEE Spectrum, 27 June 2013

Word History

Etymology

International Scientific Vocabulary, irregular from nucle- + -ide

First Known Use

1908, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing nucleotide

• diphosphopyridine nucleotide
• triphosphopyridine nucleotide

Kids Definition

nucleotide

noun

nu·​cle·​o·​tide ˈn(y)ü-klē-ə-ˌtīd 

: any of the basic units of structure of DNA or RNA that consist of a base (as adenine, cytosine, guanine, or thymine) joined to a sugar (as deoxyribose) with five carbon atoms in a molecule and to a phosphate group

Medical Definition

nucleotide

noun

nu·​cle·​o·​tide ˈn(y)ü-klē-ə-ˌtīd 

: any of several compounds that consist of a ribose or deoxyribose sugar joined to a purine or pyrimidine base and to a phosphate group and that are the basic structural units of RNA and DNA compare nucleoside