Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

phenylalanine

/ˌfiːnəlˈæləniːn/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.29 in modern English

Syllables: phenyl-ala-nine
IPA: /ˌfiːnəlˈæləniːn/

21

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

3

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An essential amino acid C₉H₁₁NO₂ found in most animal proteins; it is essential for growth; the inability to metabolize it leads to phenylketonuria; it is a constituent of aspartame.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

This molecule or its D-isomer.

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

"Nash Hensley, of South Bend, Indiana, was born with two genetic disorders: achondroplasia, a bone growth disorder characterized by dwarfism, and phenylketonuria, or PKU, which causes the phenylalanine amino acid to build up in the body, according to the Mayo Clinic. PKU is caused by a defect in the gene that produces the enzyme needed to break down phenylalanine, so Nash is required to live on a restricted, low-protein diet."

Etymology

From phenyl + alanine.

Usage

Inflected Forms

phenylalanines (plural)

Derived Forms

fluorophenylalanine homophenylalanine PAH PAL phenylalaninase polyphenylalanine

Phrases

N-methylphenylalanine phenylalanine hydroxylase phenylalanine ammonia lyase poly-phenylalanine

Frequently Paired Words

phenylalanyl phenylketonuria PKU

Synonyms

mul:Phe mul:F

Questions

How do you pronounce phenylalanine?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˌfiːnəlˈæləniːn/.
What does phenylalanine mean?: An essential amino acid C₉H₁₁NO₂ found in most animal proteins; it is essential for growth; the inability to metabolize it leads to phenylketonuria; it is a constituent of aspartame.
Where does phenylalanine come from?: From phenyl + alanine.

How to pronounce phenylalanine

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Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˌfiːnəlˈæləniːn/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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