fis·sion
(fĭsh́ən)
[Latin fissiō, fissiōn-, a cleaving, from fissus, split; see fissi–.]
noun
- The act or process of splitting into parts.
- A nuclear reaction in which an atomic nucleus, especially a heavy nucleus such as an isotope of uranium, splits into fragments, usually two fragments of comparable mass, releasing from 100 million to several hundred million electron volts of energy.
- Biology An asexual reproductive process in which a unicellular organism divides into two or more independently maturing daughter cells.
verb: -sioned, -sion·ing, -sions.
transitive verb
- To cause (an atom) to undergo fission.
intransitive verb
- To undergo fission.