name · noun · 7 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
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CMU ARPABET:R IY0 K AA2 M B IH0 N EY1 SH AH0 N
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
name
Meaning 1
The epoch of recombination of the Universe, where atomic matter formed from free particles, combining protons with electrons. One of the Ages of the Universe. The cosmic era when neutral hydrogen formed out of the cosmic soup of protons and electrons in plasma, that condensed out of the energy of the Big Bang. This era produces the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: astronomy, cosmology, natural-sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
Combination a second or subsequent time.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
The formation of genetic combinations in offspring that are not present in the parents.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
The process by which the plasma of electrons and protons produced after the Big Bang condensed into hydrogen, or the epoch in which this process occurred.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: astrophysics
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
noun
Meaning 6
(genetics) a combining of genes or characters different from what they were in the parents
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: combining, combine
7
noun
Meaning 7
(physics) a combining of charges or transfer of electrons in a gas that results in the neutralization of ions; important for ions arising from the passage of high-energy particles
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: combining, combine
History
Etymology
From recombination. The name is slightly inaccurate and is given for historical reasons: in fact the electrons and atomic nuclei were combining for the first time.
Etymology tree Proto-Italic *wre- Latin re-der. Old French re-bor. Middle English re- English re- Middle English combinacioun English combination English recombination From re- + combination.
Across languages
Translations
12 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Italian:
ricombinazione
— Combination a second or subsequent time.
Romanian:
recombinare
— Combination a second or subsequent time.
Romanian:
recombinări
— Combination a second or subsequent time.
