enzyme
/ˈɛnzaɪm/
noun
Origin
Ancient Greek
enzumos — leavened
Overview
Meaning Now
- A substance produced by a living organism which acts as a catalyst to bring about a specific biochemical reaction.
Literal older meaning
in leaven
Language path
Ancient Greek → German → English
Earliest form
enzyme
Earliest period
1881
Journey
The term was introduced by Wilhelm Kühne to replace the older term 'ferment', as scientists discovered that catalytic processes could occur outside of living cells, and thus the requirement of 'fermentation' (traditionally associated with living yeast) was scientifically inaccurate.
Evolution
- Ancient Greek
enzumos
“leavened”
Combination of 'en-' (in) and 'zumē' (leaven, yeast).
- 19th century German
Enzym
“A biological ferment”
Coined by Wilhelm Kühne to distinguish from the process of fermentation.
- Late 19th century English
enzyme
“Biological catalyst”
Adopted into English from German scientific terminology.
Connections
Word parts
en-
prefix
in
zym-
root
leaven, yeast
-e
suffix
noun marker
Related across languages
German
Enzym
enzyme
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Related to enzyme
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.