cellular

1 of 2

adjective

cel·​lu·​lar ˈsel-yə-lər How to pronounce cellular (audio)
1
a
: of, relating to, or consisting of cells
a cellular structure
cellular growth
b
: cell-mediated
cellular immunity
2
: containing cavities : having a porous texture
cellular rocks
3
: of, relating to, or being a radiotelephone system in which a geographical area (such as a city) is divided into small sections each served by a transmitter of limited range
cellular phones
cellularity noun

cellular

2 of 2

noun

Examples of cellular in a Sentence

Adjective Researchers are observing the course of the disease at the cellular level.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Inside, there's a siren, a backup battery the company claims will last up to 24 hours, and a SIM card for cellular communication, which means the system can still reach the monitoring service if your Wi-Fi is down or the power is out. PCMAG, 21 Mar. 2024 Today's message threatening Butler, a Butler staff member and a District Office staff member was linked to a cellular phone number in Nigeria. Drake Bentley, Journal Sentinel, 18 Mar. 2024 Their dorm room research developed into a dissolvable powder that aimed to protect neurons in people with ALS by reducing cellular stress and dysfunction. Daniel Gilbert, Washington Post, 16 Mar. 2024 Marius keeps getting in the way, especially since his death (and public dismemberment at the zoo) feels of a different kind than the discussions Kestner ends up having with experts on evolutionary biology and cellular consciousness. Manuel Betancourt, Variety, 13 Mar. 2024 In a commercial for Verizon that aired during the game, the actor/singer, who had already broken the internet in the clip, tried her best to break the company’s 5G cellular network. Ilana Kaplan, Peoplemag, 11 Mar. 2024 Outages are also being reported by Verizon, T-Mobile and users of other cellular providers. Tanya Wildt, Detroit Free Press, 23 Feb. 2024 Seo and a team of KIST researchers worked with Qualcomm to develop CDMA technology for cellular networks. IEEE Spectrum, 22 Feb. 2024 However, these arguments fail to consider scenarios where the cellular and wireless infrastructure is rendered useless, as occurs regularly during natural disasters, and would be an absolute under an attack by our adversaries. Ariel Cohen, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024
Noun
The move is part of a complicated series of transactions that bind Viacom18 ever closer to Reliance Industries, the petroleum to telecoms conglomerate controlled by Mukesh Ambani which is now upending Indian media with its Jio cellular, broadband internet and streaming companies. Patrick Frater, Variety, 14 Apr. 2023 Jio Platforms is a subsidiary of Reliance Industries, one of India’s biggest multinational companies and a major provider of cellular and internet services in the country. New York Times, 11 Apr. 2020 Many popular smartphone apps passively transmit user location to app companies at all hours of the day, via cellular, GPS, WiFi, or Bluetooth technology. Brent Skorup, National Review, 7 Apr. 2020 Like previous cellular networks, 5G relies on signals carried out by radio waves, which are part of the electromagnetic spectrum. NBC News, 6 Apr. 2020 Check the app’s settings and turn off uploads while on cellular. Whitson Gordon, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2020 The iPhone 7 build is the furthest along, and while the page says the CPU, storage, display, and touchscreen works, things like the GPU, camera, Bluetooth, audio, and cellular do not. Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, 5 Mar. 2020 The Walkie Talkie feature will work over either Wi-Fi or cellular, Microsoft says. Mark Hachman, PCWorld, 9 Jan. 2020 The merger, valued at $26.5 billion, is central to T-Mobile’s strategy to gain ground in an industry that is spending billions of dollars building out 5G cellular networks while engaging in intense price wars. Edmund Lee, New York Times, 18 Nov. 2019

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cellular.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

New Latin cellularis, from cellula living cell, from Latin, diminutive of cella small room

First Known Use

Adjective

1716, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1985, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cellular was in 1716

Dictionary Entries Near cellular

Cite this Entry

“Cellular.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cellular. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

cellular

adjective
cel·​lu·​lar
ˈsel-yə-lər
1
: of, relating to, or consisting of cells
2
: of, relating to, or being a radiotelephone system in which a geographical area (as a city) is divided into small sections each served by a transmitter of limited range
cellular phones

Medical Definition

cellular

adjective
cel·​lu·​lar ˈsel-yə-lər How to pronounce cellular (audio)
1
: of, relating to, or consisting of cells
2
: cell-mediated
cellular immunity
cellularity noun
plural cellularities

More from Merriam-Webster on cellular

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