Skip to main content
intercalation

intercalation

9.9
An act of adding something between other parts, often a day in a calendar
  • noun
  • /ˌɪntərkəˈleɪʃən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : intercalación
  • Intercalation in limb regeneration processes has mainly been studied in amphibians.

Examples

  • We know intercalation is more is perpendicular to the axis of the DNA.

  • These results suggest that neither cell proliferation nor cell death is the primary force of the intercalation response in chick limb buds. Mitogenic activity was measured by pH 3 immunofluorescence. The left column shows the control samples with the PBS-soaked bead.

    Academic text (2018)
  • In this way, we're using the X-rays to directly see the intercalation in the batteries as they run in.

  • Recently, Fgf-mediated intercalation was demonstrated in axolotl limbs 7, 21.

    Academic text (2018)
  • Solid C60, once it was produced in quantity, was shown to have a number of remarkable properties, including superconductivity after intercalation with alkali metal atoms.

    Academic text (1999)
  • That poisoning seems to have a greater effect on cancer cells, because cancer cells divide more quickly than normal cells do, and the cell-killing effects of multiple DNA intercalations or alkylations kick in that much sooner.

    Blog text (18)
  • A classical grafting experiment reported that intercalation did not take place if a distal part was transplanted onto an amputated limb bud at an expected stylopod 14.

    Academic text (2018)
  • Indexicals are everywhere in medieval manuscripts, taking various forms, such as marginal commentary and images, rubrics, illuminations, scribal colophons, and textual intercalation.

    Academic text (2004)
  • "The geometry itself is so eloquent; what more need be said—the exception in an otherwise unvarying order of even rows; the intercalation into a linear sequence, granted so that both pairs of infant twins might lie together in death.

    Academic text (1990)
  • In some calendars, the intercalation of an extra day or month helps align it with the solar year.

Synonyms

embolism
vsintercalation
  • Archaic
9.9

Adding a day or month to a calendar to keep it in line with the year

is the general act of inserting parts in a sequence, not only calendars
interpolation
vsintercalation
7.8

An interruption that breaks the normal flow of speech or events

is more neutral, meaning insertion between parts without interrupting flow
interposition
vsintercalation
9.2

Stepping in with a remark or action to interrupt a discussion

focuses on neutral insertion between sequence elements rather than intervention
interspersion
vsintercalation
9.7

Placing different things among others so they are spread out

means a one-time insertion into a sequence rather than repeated spacing
interspersal
vsintercalation
8.6

Putting things like jokes or pictures between other material at different points

refers to single insertion between parts, not repeated spacing

Surface Forms

intercalation singular

Morphology

intercalation = intercalate (semi-transparent) = inter + cal + ion

Formed by adding the noun-forming suffix to the verb 'intercalate'; the verb and prefix 'inter-' are meaningful but the root 'cal' is not a standalone English word and the usage is somewhat technical.

Etymology

The word intercalation comes from the Latin part inter- meaning 'between' and a root related to calendar, so it originally meant putting days or layers in 'between' other parts. That's why today intercalation means inserting something (like a leap day) into a sequence to keep things in order.