zeitgeber

[ tsahyt-gey-ber ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

an environmental cue, as the length of daylight or the degree of temperature, that helps to regulate the cycles of an organism's biological clock.

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Word History and Origins

First recorded in 1970–75; from German (1954), literally, “time-giver,” on the model of Taktgeber “electronic synchronization device, timer, metronome”

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April 19, 2024tortuous

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Zeist zeitgeist

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