Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb Medicine To remove (a tumor or eye, for example) whole from an enveloping cover or sac.
  • transitive verb Biology To remove the nucleus of.
  • transitive verb Archaic To explain; elucidate.
  • adjective Lacking a nucleus.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • In cytology, to deprive (the cell) of its nucleus; to denucleate.
  • Having no nucleus.
  • To remove (a body, as a kernel, seed, tumor, the eyeball, etc.) from its cover, case, capsule, or other envelop.
  • Figuratively, to lay open; disclose; explain; manifest.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To bring or peel out, as a kernel from its enveloping husks its enveloping husks or shell.
  • transitive verb (Med.) To remove without cutting (as a tumor).
  • transitive verb To bring to light; to make clear.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb transitive, biology To remove the nucleus from (a cell).
  • verb transitive, medicine To remove; especially, to remove or gouge out (an eyeball or tumor).
  • verb intransitive, medicine To remove something; especially, to remove an eyeball or tumor.
  • noun biology A cell which has been enucleated

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb remove the nucleus from (a cell)
  • verb remove (a tumor or eye) from an enveloping sac or cover

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin ēnucleāre, ēnucleāt-, to take out the kernel : ē-, ex-, ex- + nucleus, kernel; see nucleus.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From e- + nucleus + -ate

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Examples

  • The primary methods of treatment are to sear the tumor with high doses of gamma radiation or to enucleate the eye surgically, leaving behind an empty socket.

    The Emperor of All Maladies Siddhartha Mukherjee 2010

  • The primary methods of treatment are to sear the tumor with high doses of gamma radiation or to enucleate the eye surgically, leaving behind an empty socket.

    The Emperor of All Maladies Siddhartha Mukherjee 2010

  • The primary methods of treatment are to sear the tumor with high doses of gamma radiation or to enucleate the eye surgically, leaving behind an empty socket.

    The Emperor of All Maladies Siddhartha Mukherjee 2010

  • As is apparent from the brief review given above, the relationship between genome size and erythrocyte size is detectable in each of the vertebrate classes, even in the uniquely enucleate case of mammals.

    A Dubious "Opportunity" for IDers 2007

  • Some things are worth knowing on their own account; but others, although apparently offering no return for our trouble, should not be neglected, because without them the former cannot be thoroughly mastered [enucleate sciri non possunt].

    The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 1: Aachen-Assize 1840-1916 1913

  • There is mentioned 14.169 the case of a young woman who cut off her right hand and cast it into the fire, and attempted to enucleate her eyes, and also to hold her remaining hand in the fire.

    Anomalies and Curiosities of Medicine 1896

  • There is mentioned the case of a young woman who cut off her right hand and cast it into the fire, and attempted to enucleate her eyes, and also to hold her remaining hand in the fire.

    Anomalies and Curiosities of Medicine 1896

  • The treatment is necessarily operative; cystic tumours may be tapped and injected with iodine, but the more satisfactory procedure, both with the solid and cystic forms, is to incise freely the overlying thyreoid tissue and enucleate the tumour.

    Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities—Head—Neck. Sixth Edition. Alexander Miles 1893

  • First, we may try to assume, or tediously enucleate a consensus of religious truth as a basis of will training, e.g.,

    Youth: Its Education, Regimen, and Hygiene G. Stanley Hall 1885

  • In the present imperfect state of knowledge it may be impossible to enucleate miracle, however defined, of all mystery.

    Miracles and Supernatural Religion James Morris Whiton 1876

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