gel

[ jel ]
See synonyms for gel on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. Physical Chemistry. a semirigid colloidal dispersion of a solid with a liquid or gas, as jelly, glue, etc.

  2. Theater. gelatin (def. 5).

  1. Biochemistry. a semirigid polymer, as agarose, starch, cellulose acetate, or polyacrylamide, cast into slabs or cylinders for the electrophoretic separation of proteins and nucleic acids.

verb (used without object),gelled, gel·ling.
  1. to form or become a gel.

Origin of gel

1
First recorded in 1895–1900; shortening of gelatin

Other words from gel

  • de·gel, verb (used with object), de·gelled, de·gel·ling.
  • non·gel·ling, adjective
  • re·gel, verb (used without object), re·gelled, re·gel·ling.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for gel

gel

/ (dʒɛl) /


noun
  1. a semirigid jelly-like colloid in which a liquid is dispersed in a solid: nondrip paint is a gel

  1. theatre informal See gelatine (def. 4)

verbgels, gelling or gelled
  1. to become or cause to become a gel

  2. a variant spelling of jell

Origin of gel

1
C19: by shortening from gelatine

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012