Meanings
plural telomeres
- biologyEither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome.
It has been known for some time that when cells divide, causing chromosomes to duplicate, telomeres get shorter. The more a cell divides, then, the shorter the telomeres become.
2005, Cara Birrittieri, What Every Woman Should Know about Fertility and Her Biological Clock, page 512 more examples
2004, Peter M. Lansdorp, 11: Telomeres and Telomere Regulation, Robert Paul Lanza (editor), Handbook of Stem Cells, Volume 2: Adult and Fetal Stem Cells, page 127, Chromosome ends or telomeres are composed of guanine-rich repeat sequences and associated proteins. A minimum number of repeats is essential for proper telomere function and to avoid sustained activation of DNA damage pathways that may result in replicative senescence or cell death.
Previous studies have examined telomere lengths as an indirect measure of aging in cloned animals. Sheep were reported to have shorter telomeres suggestive of premature aging while cattle had either age-appropriate or longer telomeres.
2007, Peter Sutovsky, Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer, page 78
Origin
From telo- (“end”) + -mere (“part”).
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 端粒
- 端粒 (duān lì)either of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Finnish telomeeri
- telomeerieither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
French télomère
- télomèreeither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Hindi अंत्यलक
- अंत्यलक (antyalak)either of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Icelandic litningsendi
- litningsendieither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Japanese テロメア, 末端小粒
- テロメア (teromea)either of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
- 末端小粒 (mattanshōryū)either of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Polish telomer
- telomereither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Portuguese telómero, telômero
- telómeroeither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
- telômeroeither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Romanian telomer
- telomereither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Slovak teloméra
- teloméraeither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Spanish telómero
- telómeroeither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Swedish telomer
- telomereither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Tamil முனைக்கூறு, ஈற்றுப்பாத்து
- முனைக்கூறு (muṉaikkūṟu)either of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
- ஈற்றுப்பாத்து (īṟṟuppāttu)either of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Turkish telomer
- telomereither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Welsh telomer
- telomereither of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome
Cite this entry
telomere. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/telomere
“telomere.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/telomere. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “telomere,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/telomere.
Source: telomere on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.