Glycolysis
/ɡlaɪˈkɒlɪsɪs/noun
The metabolic pathway by which glucose is broken down to release energy.
Did you know?The suffix “-lysis” comes from the same Greek word meaning loosening or release that appears in analysis, dialysis, and paralysis.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*swel-
“To be sweet; a proposed ancestral root connected with sweetness”
Ancient Greek
Greek
γλυκύς (glykýs)
“Sweet”
Ancient Greek
Greek
λύσις (lýsis)
“A loosening, release, or dissolution”
19th Century
Scientific Greek
glyco- + -lysis
“A combining form meaning sugar plus a process of loosening or breakdown”
Late 19th Century
German/Scientific English
Glykolyse / glycolysis
“The breakdown of sugar, especially glucose, in biochemical research”
Modern English
English
glycolysis
“The ten-step cellular pathway that converts glucose into pyruvate while generating ATP”