| Learning / English Dictionary |
AFFINITY
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
A natural attraction or feeling of kinship
Example:
James's affinity with Sam
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("affinity" is a kind of...):
attraction; attractiveness (the quality of arousing interest; being attractive or something that attracts)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Inherent resemblance between persons or things
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("affinity" is a kind of...):
resemblance (similarity in appearance or external or superficial details)
Sense 3
Meaning:
The force attracting atoms to each other and binding them together in a molecule
Example:
basic dyes have an affinity for wool and silk
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural phenomena
Hypernyms ("affinity" is a kind of...):
force ((physics) the influence that produces a change in a physical quantity)
Sense 4
Meaning:
(immunology) the attraction between an antigen and an antibody
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural phenomena
Hypernyms ("affinity" is a kind of...):
attraction; attractive force (the force by which one object attracts another)
Domain category:
immunology (the branch of medical science that studies the body's immune system)
Sense 5
Meaning:
A close connection marked by community of interests or similarity in nature or character
Example:
anthropology's kinship with the humanities
Synonyms:
affinity; kinship
Classified under:
Nouns denoting relations between people or things or ideas
Hypernyms ("affinity" is a kind of...):
relation (an abstraction belonging to or characteristic of two entities or parts together)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "affinity"):
rapport; resonance (a relationship of mutual understanding or trust and agreement between people)
sympathy (a relation of affinity or harmony between people; whatever affects one correspondingly affects the other)
Sense 6
Meaning:
(biology) state of relationship between organisms or groups of organisms resulting in resemblance in structure or structural parts
Example:
in anatomical structure prehistoric man shows close affinity with modern humans
Synonyms:
affinity; phylogenetic relation
Classified under:
Nouns denoting relations between people or things or ideas
Hypernyms ("affinity" is a kind of...):
family relationship; kinship; relationship ((anthropology) relatedness or connection by blood or marriage or adoption)
Domain category:
biological science; biology (the science that studies living organisms)
Sense 7
Meaning:
(anthropology) kinship by marriage or adoption; not a blood relationship
Classified under:
Nouns denoting relations between people or things or ideas
Hypernyms ("affinity" is a kind of...):
family relationship; kinship; relationship ((anthropology) relatedness or connection by blood or marriage or adoption)
Domain category:
anthropology (the social science that studies the origins and social relationships of human beings)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "affinity"):
steprelationship (a family relationship by virtue of remarriage)
Antonym:
consanguinity ((anthropology) related by blood)
Derivation:
affine ((anthropology) related by marriage)
Context examples:
Milodistim exhibits greater receptor binding affinity and colony stimulating activity than its parent cytokines.
(Milodistim, NCI Thesaurus)
Exhibiting high electron affinity, misonidazole induces the formation of free radicals and depletes radioprotective thiols, thereby sensitizing hypoxic cells to the cytotoxic effects of ionizing radiation.
(Misonidazole, NCI Thesaurus)
This agent binds to mu-opioid receptors with a high affinity, and a lesser degree to kappa- and gamma-opioid receptors.
(Naloxone Hydrochloride, NCI Thesaurus)
Naloxone binds to mu-opioid receptors with a high affinity, and a lesser degree to kappa- and gamma-opioid receptors in the CNS.
(Naloxone, NCI Thesaurus)
Naratriptan hydrochloride binds selectively and with high affinity to the 5-HT1D and 5-HT1B receptor subtypes.
(Naratriptan Hydrochloride, NCI Thesaurus)
Nateglinide, compared to repaglitinide, binds with a higher affinity to the SUR1 subunit and with a faster onset of action and a shorter duration of action.
(Nateglinide, NCI Thesaurus)
Naveglitazar binds with higher affinity to PPARgamma than to PPARalpha.
(Naveglitazar, NCI Thesaurus)
Astrocytes have high- affinity transmitter uptake systems, voltage-dependent and transmitter-gated ion channels, and can release transmitter, but their role in signaling (as in many other functions) is not well understood.
(Murine Astrocytes, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)
FR alpha is a high-affinity folate-binding protein and a member of the folate receptor family; this receptor is overexpressed in a majority of ovarian cancers and in about 50% of breast cancers.
(Multi-epitope Folate Receptor Alpha Peptide Vaccine, NCI Thesaurus)
Monoclonal antibody 9.2.27 FAB binds with high affinity to melanoma cells and has potential use in immunodiagnostic imaging and the immunotherapy of melanoma.
(Monoclonal Antibody 9.2.27 F(ab), NCI Thesaurus)
