Standard Lemma guide

bioreactor

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A vat or pressure vessel, containing microorganisms or biochemically active substances, used for biotechnological processes such as fermentation, waste recycling, or making drugs.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: biochemistry, biology, chemistry, microbiology, natural-sciences, physical-sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: chemical reactor, reaction vessel, reactor

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gweyh3-der. Ancient Greek βῐ́ος (bĭ́os) Ancient Greek βῐο- (bĭo-)der. English bio- English react Proto-Indo-European *-tōr Proto-Italic *-tōr Latin -tor Latin -ātor Old French -eorbor. Middle English -our ▲ Latin -torlbor. English -or English reactor English bioreactor From bio- + reactor.

Across languages

Translations

4 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Finnish: bioreaktori — A fermentation vat containing microorganisms
  • Irish: bith-imoibreoir — A fermentation vat containing microorganisms
  • Italian: bioreattore — A fermentation vat containing microorganisms
  • Polish: bioreaktor — A fermentation vat containing microorganisms