View source for Particular - particulate

Doi not confuse the two words '''particular''' and '''particulate'''. Both are primarily [[adjective]]s, and both can be used [[substantive]]ly. Both are recognized as correct by ]]spell-checker]]s, but they have separate and distinct meanings in [[Present-day English]].
*'''Particular''' is the more common word. It is used in everyday English. For a note on its meanings, see [[Particular (meaning)]] - and for a note on the distinction between this word and '''peculiar[ly]''', with which it is sometimes confused, see [[Particular - peculiar]].
*'''Particulate''' is a term used in the physical sciences. It describes 
**in chemistry and the environmental sciences: matter in the form of tiny [[particle]]s - larger than molecules, and capable of separate identification. In gases, such as the air, '''particulate pollution''' (~ contamination in the form of small drops of liquid or discrete units of a solid, such as dust, or the solid items present in soot or exhaust fumes) may be removed by '''particulate filtration''', using appropriate filters;
**in physics, '''particulate''' may also refer to sub-atomic particles, in phrases such as '''particulate radiation''' - now more usually called '''particle radiation'''. This is radiation through the emission of sub-atomic particles.
**n biological sciences, '''particulate inheritance''' is an older expression to label one of two competing theories of how inheritance works (the other was 'the blending model'). This proposed that individual characteristics, such as eye colour, are passed down as separate units, with each characteristic being inherited from an individual parent. With some modification, this has become the orthodox view of inheritance of separate characteristics through '''genes''', of which the individual has two, one inherited from each parent, one the 'dominant' gene, and the other  the 'recessive' - which may yet be passed on to future children.
::You may also want to see an [[etymology|etymological]] note on words that share a [[suffix]] at [[-cule]]

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[[Category:clarification of meanings]]