monad
[ mon-ad, moh-nad ]
/ ˈmɒn æd, ˈmoʊ næd /
noun
Biology.
- any simple, single-celled organism.
- any of various small, flagellate, colorless ameboids with one to three flagella, especially of the genus Monas.
Philosophy.
- (in the metaphysics of Leibniz) an unextended, indivisible, and indestructible entity that is the basic or ultimate constituent of the universe and a microcosm of it.
- (in the philosophy of Giordano Bruno) a basic and irreducible metaphysical unit that is spatially and psychically individuated.
- any basic metaphysical entity, especially having an autonomous life.
a single unit or entity.
Origin of monad
OTHER WORDS FROM monad
mo·nad·ic [muh-nad-ik] /məˈnæd ɪk/, mo·nad·i·cal, mo·nad·al, adjective mo·nad·i·cal·ly, adverbWords nearby monad
Example sentences from the Web for monad
British Dictionary definitions for monad
monad
/ (ˈmɒnæd, ˈməʊ-) /
noun
plural -ads or -ades (-əˌdiːz) philosophy
- any fundamental singular metaphysical entity, esp if autonomous
- (in the metaphysics of Leibnitz) a simple indestructible nonspatial element regarded as the unit of which reality consists
- (in the pantheistic philosophy of Giordano Bruno) a fundamental metaphysical unit that is spatially extended and psychically aware
a single-celled organism, esp a flagellate protozoan
an atom, ion, or radical with a valency of one
Also called (for senses 1, 2):
monas
Derived forms of monad
monadical, adjective monadically, adverbWord Origin for monad
C17: from Late Latin
monas, from Greek: unit, from
monos alone
Medical definitions for monad
monad
[ mō′năd′ ]
n.
An atom or a radical with a valence of 1.
A single-celled microorganism, especially a protozoan of the genus Monas.
Any of the four chromatids of a tetrad that, after the first and second meiotic divisions, separate to become the chromosomal material in each of the four daughter cells.