a specialized cell that conducts nerve impulses: consists of a cell body, axon, and dendrites
Also called: nerve cell
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
neu•ron /ˈnʊrɑn, ˈnyʊr-/USA pronunciation
n. [countable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025- a special cell in the body that is capable of sending along messages that represent feelings, commands to muscles, etc.
neu•ron
(nŏŏr′on, nyŏŏr′-),USA pronunciation n.
neu•ron•al
(nŏŏr′ə nl, nyŏŏr′-, nŏŏ rōn′l, nyŏŏ-),USA pronunciation adj.
- Cell Biol. a specialized, impulse-conducting cell that is the functional unit of the nervous system, consisting of the cell body and its processes, the axon and dendrites.
- Greek neûron sinew, cord, nerve
- 1880–85;
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'neuron' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Purkinje cell
- aponeurosis
- axon
- bipolar
- brain cell
- dendrite
- end plate
- epineurium
- guanethidine
- horseradish peroxidase
- interneuron
- motoneuron
- motor neuron
- motor unit
- myelin sheath
- nerve
- nerve cell
- neuro-
- neurone
- photoreceptor
- re-uptake
- reflex arc
- sensory neuron
- summation
- synapse