Skip to main content
to membrane

to membrane

9.3
To cover something with a thin, flexible layer or cause it to grow one
  • verb
  • /ˈmɛmˌbreɪn/
  • Specialized
translation icon : recubrir con una membrana
  • The surgeon will membrane the damaged tissue to promote healing.

Examples

  • Cantilevered mounds of adipose tissue, often blue membraned and in the way that they jiggle.

  • They aim to membrane the laboratory samples for better analysis.

  • Proper technique is vital when you membrane the cell cultures.

Synonyms

to coat
vsto membrane
105 2.8

To cover something with a thin layer of a substance

enclose or line something using a thin biological layer

Antonyms

146 2.8

Make something visible by removing a cover or letting light reach it

37 2.7

Remove a cover to show what is under it

Idioms

Acting or feeling very silly and not thinking clearly, often as a joke

Compounds

cell membrane
  • Specialized
4 3.6

A thin flexible outer layer around a cell that controls what enters and leaves

mucous membrane
  • Specialized
3 4.6

A moist inner layer lining body openings that makes sticky fluid to protect and keep them wet

plasma membrane
  • Specialized
1 4.5

A thin flexible layer around a cell that controls what enters and leaves it

tympanic membrane
  • Specialized
1 5.9

A thin skin between the outer ear and the middle ear that vibrates when sound hits it

nictitating membrane
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A thin transparent third eyelid that protects and keeps the eye wet

fetal membrane
  • Specialized
1 6.2

A thin layer that surrounds and protects a developing baby in the womb

1 4.6

A thin layer that lets some small particles pass but blocks others

basilar membrane
  • Specialized
7.4

A thin stiff membrane inside the inner ear that carries sound vibrations to help hearing

9.9

A thin membrane with many blood vessels in bird and reptile eggs that helps the embryo breathe and grow

embryonic membrane
  • Specialized
8.1

A thin skin that sometimes covers a baby's head when it is born

arachnoid membrane
  • Specialized
8.9

A thin, web-like middle layer that covers the brain and spinal cord

8.0

A thin layer that forms around a fertilized egg to stop other sperm

membrane bone
  • Specialized
7.9

A bone that forms directly in soft tissue instead of from cartilage, like skull and collar bones

membrane filter
  • Specialized
4.4

A thin material with tiny holes that removes particles and germs from liquids or air

membrane-forming
  • Specialized
6.4

To make a thin layer that covers and protects a surface

A serious lung problem in babies born too early that makes breathing hard

hyaloid membrane
  • Specialized
9.9

A thin clear layer inside the eye that holds the jelly in front of the retina

serous membrane
  • Specialized
8.4

A thin layer of tissue that lines spaces inside the chest or abdomen and makes a slippery fluid

synovial membrane
  • Specialized
6.9

A thin tissue inside a joint that makes fluid to keep the joint moving smoothly

9.5

A thin fold of skin that partly covers the entrance to the vagina and is present at birth

How Covered

to enclose
84 3.7
to membrane
  • Specialized
9.3
to coat
105 2.8
to line
206 5.1
to expose
146 2.8

Surface Forms

membrane infinitive
membraned past
membraned past participle
membraning present participle
membranes third person singular

Etymology

Membrane (verb) comes from the same Latin membrana and membrum meaning 'limb' or 'skin', giving the image of putting on a thin 'skin'. So to membrane something is to cover or line it with a thin, protective layer.