growth hormone

noun

1

: a vertebrate polypeptide hormone that is secreted by the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland and regulates growth

also : a recombinant version of this hormone

called also somatotropin

2

: growth regulator

Examples of growth hormone in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The kidney of a full-grown pig is bigger than that of a person's, so an adolescent pig is used, and the growth hormone receptor is eliminated to keep it from growing to its full size after the transplant, Montgomery said. —Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 17 Dec. 2024

In adults, the benefits of taking growth hormone are a little more subtle, Eisenberg notes. —Caroline C. Boyle, USA TODAY, 22 Dec. 2024

Salk Institute Investigating the mechanisms involved in periods of fasting, when the stomach and brain communicate to promote the secretion of a growth hormone directed at muscle cells, the researchers discovered that this chain reaction reduced BCL6 levels. —New Atlas, 24 Jan. 2025

Low Levels of Chemical Residues Conventional dairy farms typically use antibiotics and synthetic growth hormones to promote growth and protect their cattle against disease. —Chelsea Rae Bourgeois, Rdn, Health, 20 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1924, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for growth hormone

• acetone
• anglophone
• baritone
• bourguignon
• buspirone
• chaperon
• chaperone
• cobblestone
• collarbone
• cornerstone
• cortisone
• dictaphone

Kids Definition

growth hormone

noun

: a hormone in plants or animals that regulates growth

especially : one produced by the pituitary gland

Medical Definition

growth hormone

noun

: a vertebrate polypeptide hormone that is secreted by the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland and regulates growth

also : a recombinant version of this hormone

called also somatotropic hormone, somatotropin

see human growth hormone