Molecule

How to spell molecule

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce molecule

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does molecule mean?

1. nounThe smallest unit of a chemical compound, made of two or more atoms bonded together, that retains the properties of that compound.

Molecule in a sentence

• A water molecule contains two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom.

• The researchers modelled how each molecule binds to the receptor.

Where does molecule come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word reached English from French molecule in the late 1700s, which in turn was built from the scientific Latin molecula. That Latin form was a diminutive of moles, meaning a mass, a bulk, or a great heap, so molecula literally described a 'tiny mass' or 'little quantity of matter'. Early natural philosophers used it for any minute particle of a substance before chemistry settled it on its modern meaning: the smallest unit of a compound that still keeps that compound's properties. The same Latin moles also gives us 'molar' (a grinding tooth) and the verb behind 'demolish', where a mass is pulled down. The spelling trap is the soft -cule ending and the single l: the diminutive suffix is the reason it ends in -cule rather than the more common -cle or -cle, and there is only one l, never two.

How the word is built

• mole- (from Latin moles: mass, bulk)
• -cule (diminutive suffix: a little one)