LIPID
What does "LIPID" mean?
Any of a group of fatty, water-insoluble organic compounds, including fats, oils, and waxes.
Meanings
- An organic compound, such as a fat, oil, wax, or phospholipid, that dissolves in nonpolar solvents but not in water and serves as an energy store and cell-membrane component. The cell membrane is built from a double layer of lipid molecules. technical
Did you know?
- Every cell in your body is wrapped in a lipid bilayer - two sheets of fat molecules whose water-fearing tails turn inward, which is why oil and water naturally arrange your cell membranes for you.
- The mRNA COVID-19 vaccines rely on lipid nanoparticles - tiny fat bubbles - to ferry fragile genetic instructions into cells, because lipids can slip through the cell's own fatty membrane.
Word origin
From Greek 'lipos', meaning fat, with the chemical suffix '-id'; the term was introduced into scientific French and English in the early 20th century.
Remember it
LIPID: think 'lip' - your lips have a fatty, oily lipid layer that keeps them from drying out.
A little poem
Two sheets of soft fat-
the wall around every cell
is made of water's fear.
haiku
Wordplay
- Why did the fat molecule refuse to mingle at the water-cooler? It was strictly a lipid, not a dissolver.
What it teaches
Sometimes the wall that protects you is built precisely from what won't blend in.
Quick facts
What does LIPID mean?
Any of a group of fatty, water-insoluble organic compounds, including fats, oils, and waxes.
Is LIPID a valid word?
Yes — LIPID is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is LIPID?
LIPID has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does LIPID come from?
From Greek 'lipos', meaning fat, with the chemical suffix '-id'; the term was introduced into scientific French and English in the early 20th century.
What can LIPID teach us?
Sometimes the wall that protects you is built precisely from what won't blend in.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.