Meanings
nounmacromolecule (plural macromolecules)
plural macromolecules
- biochemistryA very large molecule, especially used in reference to large biological polymers (e.g. nucleic acids and proteins).
Beadle discovered that genes carried instructions to build proteins—complex, multidimensional macromolecules that were the workhorses of the cell.
2010, Siddhartha Mukherjee, The Emperor of All Maladies, Fourth Estate (2011), page 345
Synonyms & antonyms
nounany very large complex molecule; found only in plants and animals
Similar
Broader
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*meh₂ḱ-
- Proto-Indo-European*mh₂ḱrós
- Proto-Hellenic*makrós
- Ancient Greekμᾰκρός (măkrós)
- Frenchmacro-
- Englishmacro-
- Latinmōlēs
- New Latinmōlēcula
- Frenchmolécule
- Englishmolecule
- Englishmacromolecule
Translations
Catalan macromolècula
- macromolèculalarge molecule
Czech makromolekula
- makromolekulalarge molecule
Finnish makromolekyyli
- makromolekyylilarge molecule
German Makromolekül
- Makromoleküllarge molecule
Hungarian makromolekula
- makromolekulalarge molecule
Icelandic stórsameind
- stórsameindlarge molecule
Italian macromolecola
- macromolecolalarge molecule
Japanese 高分子
- 高分子 (kōbunshi)large molecule
Persian ماکرومولکول
- ماکرومولکول (mâkromolekul)large molecule
Portuguese macromolécula
- macromoléculalarge molecule
Romanian macromoleculă
- macromoleculălarge molecule
Spanish macromolécula
- macromoléculalarge molecule
Cite this entry
APA
macromolecule. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/macromolecule
MLA
“macromolecule.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/macromolecule. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “macromolecule,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/macromolecule.
Source: macromolecule on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.