islet
/ˈaɪlət/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈaɪlət/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈī-lət/ (ame, mw)
islet — noun
- isletsingular
- isletsplural
1. a very small piece of land, smaller than a typical island, that is completely su
a very small piece of land, smaller than a typical island, that is completely surrounded by water, especially one found in a lake, river, or near the coast of a larger body of water.
Hugo rowed his small boat out to the rocky islet where his grandfather kept a fishing hut.
rowed to [destination]: movement toward an islet
Wei and his sister walked across the wet sand at low tide to explore the tiny islet.
The guide pointed toward a small green islet in the middle of the lake.
Amara stood on the cliff and watched the waves crash against a small islet near the shore.
- island
the general term for any land surrounded by water; 'island' is far more common and can describe land of any size
- isle
a literary or poetic term for island; often used in place names (e.g. the Isle of Wight)
- cay
a very small, low island formed on a coral reef, found in tropical regions
- key
a regional variant of 'cay', used in the Caribbean (e.g. the Florida Keys)
文法句型
islet + prepositional phrase
常見錯誤
2. a cluster of cells inside the pancreas that produce hormones such as insulin and
a cluster of cells inside the pancreas that produce hormones such as insulin and glucagon, which regulate the level of sugar in the blood; also called an islet of Langerhans.
Dr. Kim explained that the islets in the pancreas are like tiny factories producing insulin day and night.
metaphor: islets compared to factories producing insulin
During her check-up, Dr. Nakamura showed Mei the scan of her pancreas and explained that her immune cells were destroying the islets.
medical context: immune system attacking pancreatic islets in diabetes
Scientists at the research centre are developing a new method to transplant islets from donors into diabetic patients.
At the university lab, Dr. Watanabe used a special stain to make the islet cells visible under a microscope.
In 1869, a German medical student named Paul Langerhans first described the clusters of cells he saw inside a pancreas.
- pancreatic islets
the full medical term, used interchangeably with 'islets' in clinical contexts
- islets of Langerhans
the formal anatomical name, commonly used in textbooks and medical literature
文法句型
islet + of + proper noun (Langerhans)
the + (plural) islets
用法筆記
Frequently in the plural form 'islets' when referring to the pancreas as a whole. The phrase 'islets of Langerhans' is the standard medical name, named after the German pathologist Paul Langerhans who discovered them in 1869.