| respiratory quotient | |
| —n | |
| biology the ratio of the volume of carbon dioxide expired to the volume of oxygen consumed by an organism, tissue, or cell in a given time | |
| an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle. |
| a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal. |
respiratory quotient n.
Abbr. R.Q.
The ratio of carbon dioxide produced by tissue metabolism to oxygen consumed in the same metabolism.