supernatant

[ soo-per-neyt-nt ]

adjective

1. floating above or on the surface.

supernatant

/ ˌsuːpəˈneɪtənt /

adjective

1. floating on the surface or over something
2. chem (of a liquid) lying above a sediment or settled precipitate

Derived Forms

• ˌsupernaˈtation, noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of supernatant¹

1655–65; < Latin supernatant- (stem of supernatāns ), present participle of supernatāre to swim or float above. See super-, natant

Word History and Origins

Origin of supernatant¹

C17: from Latin supernatāre to float, from super- + natāre to swim

Example Sentences

Tubes were put on the magnet until the supernatant ran clear so that it could be removed and discarded.

From Nature

The detection limit in the plaque assay is 10 p.f.u. ml−1 in cell supernatant, and 100 p.f.u. ml−1 in serum.

From Nature

After lysis, the lysate was centrifuged at 13,200 r.p.m. for 15 min, the supernatant was transferred to fresh tubes, and a second round of centrifugation was performed.

From Nature

Equal volumes of the input, pellet and post-centrifugation supernatant fractions were then analysed by western blot, as described above.

From Nature

Cells were cultured in HMM for 24 h, and the supernatant was collected for analysis.

From Nature

Related Words

• bouncy
• resilient