hemicellulose
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 1.73 in modern English
20
Scrabble Score
13
Letters
4
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A mixture of several plant polysaccharides, of smaller molecular weight than cellulose, that are soluble in dilute alkali; they are involved in the manufacture of paper, and are used in the production of furfural and ethanol.
Example Sentences
- "The changes in texture that occur during ripening and cooking result from changes in the cell-wall materials, in particular the cement carbohydrates. One group is the hemicelluloses, which form strengthening cross-links between celluloses. They are built up from glucose and xylose sugars, and can be partly dissolved and removed from cell walls during cooking."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *sem- Proto-Indo-European *sēmi Proto-Hellenic [Term?] Ancient Greek ἡμῐ- (hēmĭ-)lbor. English hemi- Proto-Indo-European *ḱel-der. Latin cella Proto-Indo-European *-lós Proto-Indo-European *-elós Proto-Italic *-elos Latin -ula Latin cellulabor. French cellule Proto-Indo-European *h₃ed- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *h₃édosder.? Proto-Italic *-ŏ̄dsos? Old Latin -ōssus Latin -ōsuslbor. French -ose French cellulosebor. English cellulose English hemicellulose From hemi- (“half”) + cellulose.