zwitterion

Z10W4I1T1T1E1R1I1O1N1
/ˈtsvɪtəɹ.aɪ̯ən//ˈzwɪtəɹ.aɪ̯ən//ˈtswɪtəɹ.aɪ̯ən//ˈtsvɪtəɹ.aɪ̯ɑn/

noun

A molecule, such as an amino acid, that carries both a positive and a negative charge.

Similar
inner saltdipolar ion
OriginGerman Zwitterion →
Scrabble 22
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounzwitterion (plural zwitterions)

plural zwitterions

  1. chemistryA molecule, such as an amino acid, that carries both a positive and a negative charge.

    Synonyms: inner salt, dipolar ion

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA molecule, such as an amino acid, that carries both a positive and a negative charge.

Similar
inner saltdipolar ion

Origin

  1. GermanZwitter
  2. GermanIon
  3. GermanZwitterion
  4. Englishzwitterion

Unadapted borrowing from German Zwitterion, from Zwitter (“hermaphrodite”) + Ion (“ion”).

More words from German

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic أيون مزدوج
  • أيون مزدوجmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Catalan zwitterió
  • zwitteriómolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Chinese Mandarin 兩性離子 /两性离子
  • 兩性離子 /两性离子 (liǎngxìng lízǐ)molecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Estonian tsvitterioon
  • tsvitterioonmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Finnish kahtaisioni, zwitterioni
  • kahtaisionimolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
  • zwitterionimolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
French zwitterion
  • zwitterionmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
German Zwitterion
  • Zwitterionmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Hungarian ikerion
  • ikerionmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Italian zwitterione
  • zwitterionemolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Polish jon obojnaczy, jon dwubiegunowy
  • jon obojnaczymolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
  • jon dwubiegunowymolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
  • związek dipolarnymolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
  • zwitterjonmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
  • amfijonmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Portuguese zwitterion, zwitteríon
  • zwitterionmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
  • zwitteríonmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
  • zwitteriãomolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Russian цви́ттер-ио́н
  • цви́ттер-ио́н (cvítter-ión)molecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Spanish zwitterión
  • zwitteriónmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Swedish zwitterjon
  • zwitterjonmolecule that carries both a positive and a negative charge
Cite this entry
APA

zwitterion. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/zwitterion

MLA

“zwitterion.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/zwitterion. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “zwitterion,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/zwitterion.

Source: zwitterion on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.