fatty acid

American

noun

Biochemistry.

any of a class of aliphatic acids, especially palmitic, stearic, or oleic acid, consisting of a long hydrocarbon chain ending in a carboxyl group that bonds to glycerol to form a fat.

fatty acid British

noun

any of a class of aliphatic carboxylic acids, such as palmitic acid, stearic acid, and oleic acid, that form part of a lipid molecule
another name for carboxylic acid, used esp of a naturally occurring one

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

fatty acid Scientific

/ făt′ē /

Any of a large group of organic acids, especially those found in animal and vegetable fats and oils. Fatty acids are mainly composed of long chains of hydrocarbons ending in a carboxyl group. A fatty acid is saturated when the bonds between carbon atoms are all single bonds. It is unsaturated when any of these bonds is a double bond.

Etymology

Origin of fatty acid

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Athletes showed differences in short-chain fatty acid levels and in the presence of certain bacterial species depending on how hard they were training.

From Science Daily

Not all Wisconsin cows are grass-fed, but grass-fed milk can have up to twice the beneficial Omega-3 fatty acids compared to milk from feedlot cows.

From Los Angeles Times

These products are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, mainly eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid, commonly known as EPA and DHA.

From Science Daily

They belong to a group of molecules that can be related to fatty acids.

From Science Daily

It limits foods like dairy products, meat, and items high in saturated fatty acids.

From Science Daily

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023