plasma Meaning, Definition & Usage

noun the colorless watery fluid of the blood and lymph that contains no cells, but in which the blood cells (erythrocytes, leukocytes, and thrombocytes) are suspended
plasm; blood plasma.
noun a green slightly translucent variety of chalcedony used as a gemstone
noun (physical chemistry) a fourth state of matter distinct from solid or liquid or gas and present in stars and fusion reactors; a gas becomes a plasma when it is heated until the atoms lose all their electrons, leaving a highly electrified collection of nuclei and free electrons
- particles in space exist in the form of a plasma

See Plasm.

(Min.) A variety of quartz, of a color between grass green and leek green, which is found associated with common chalcedony. It was much esteemed by the ancients for making engraved ornaments.
(Biol.) The viscous material of an animal or vegetable cell, out of which the various tissues are formed by a process of differentiation; protoplasm.
Unorganized material; elementary matter.
(Med.) A mixture of starch and glycerin, used as a substitute for ointments. U. S. Disp. = blood plasma 6. (physics) a state of matter in which charged particles have sufficient energy to move freely, rather than bound in atoms as in ordinary matter; it has some of the properties of a gas, but is a conductor of electricity; plasmas are found naturally in the atmosphere of stars, and can be created in special laboratory apparatus