conjugation

[ kon-juh-gey-shuhn ]

noun

1. Grammar.
   1. the inflection of verbs.
   2. the whole set of inflected forms of a verb or the recital or display thereof in a fixed order:

      The conjugation of the Latin verb amo begins amō, amas, amat.

   3. a class of verbs having similar sets of inflected forms:

      the Latin second conjugation.

2. an act of joining:

   a conjugation of related ideas.

3. the state of being joined together; union; conjunction.
4. Biology.
   1. the reproductive process in ciliate protozoans in which two organisms of different mating types exchange nuclear material through a temporary area of fusion.
   2. temporary union or permanent fusion as a form of sexual reproduction in certain algae and fungi, the male gametes of one organism uniting with female gametes of the other.
   3. a temporary union of two bacteria, in Escherichia and related groups, in which genetic material is transferred by migration of a plasmid, either solitary or as part of a chromosome, from one bacterium, the donor, to the other, the recipient; sometimes also including the transfer of resistance to antibiotics.

conjugation

/ ˌkɒndʒʊˈɡeɪʃən /

noun

1. grammar
   1. inflection of a verb for person, number, tense, voice, mood, etc
   2. the complete set of the inflections of a given verb
2. a joining, union, or conjunction
3. a type of sexual reproduction in ciliate protozoans involving the temporary union of two individuals and the subsequent migration and fusion of the gametic nuclei
4. (in bacteria) the direct transfer of DNA between two cells that are temporarily joined
5. the union of gametes, esp isogametes, as in some algae and fungi
6. the pairing of chromosomes in the early phase of a meiotic division
7. chem the existence of alternating double or triple bonds in a chemical compound, with consequent electron delocalization over part of the molecule

conjugation

/ kŏn′jə-gā′shən /

1. A type of sexual reproduction in single-celled organisms, such as bacteria and some algae and fungi, in which two organisms or cells from the same species join together to exchange genetic material before undergoing cell division.
2. The fusion of two gametes to form a zygote, as in some algae and fungi.

Derived Forms

• ˌconjuˈgational, adjective
• ˌconjuˈgationally, adverb

Other Words From

• conju·gation·al adjective
• conju·gation·al·ly adverb
• noncon·ju·gation noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of conjugation¹

1400–50; late Middle English conjugacion (< Anglo-French ) < Late Latin conjugātiōn- (stem of conjugātiō ), equivalent to conjugāt ( us ) ( conjugate ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

It wasn't until many years after the Buddha's death that the sutras, or scriptures, were finally translated into Sanskrit — an intellectually complex language of precise conjugations, whose roots extending back to at least 1500 BC.

From Salon

But Spanish speakers from four centuries ago might have recognized the unusual verb conjugations — if not the unorthodox pronunciations and words drawn from English and languages indigenous to North America.

From New York Times

“These are the conjugations we need to know,” she said in one recent afternoon class, plowing through page after page of exercises.

From Washington Post

Most notably, the conjugations and tenses were difficult.

From Washington Post

Throughout, she plays with various conjugations of the word “say” — “What’d he say?”

From Los Angeles Times