(せっぺん)

せっぺん
noun
section; slice; intercept
1. section; thin slice (for microscopic examination)
A thin slice of tissue, material, or specimen prepared for examination under a microscope. Standard terminology in biology, medicine, and materials science.
組織(そしき)切片(せっぺん)(つく)る。
To prepare a tissue section.
凍結(とうけつ)切片(せっぺん)顕微鏡(けんびきょう)観察(かんさつ)した。
We observed the frozen section under a microscope.
病理(びょうり)検査(けんさ)のために腫瘍(しゅよう)切片(せっぺん)染色(せんしょく)して診断(しんだん)(おこな)った。
For the pathological examination, the tumor section was stained and a diagnosis was made.
2. intercept (in mathematics)
The point where a line or curve crosses an axis on a graph. In the equation y = mx + b, the value b is the y-intercept.
y切片(せっぺん)(もと)めなさい。
Find the y-intercept.
この直線(ちょくせん)のy切片(せっぺん)は3である。
The y-intercept of this line is 3.
一次関数(いちじかんすう)のグラフでは、(かたむ)きと切片(せっぺん)()かれば直線(ちょくせん)(えが)くことができる。
In a linear function's graph, you can draw the line if you know the slope and the intercept.

Compound of (せつ) ('cut') and (へん) ('piece; fragment'). The word covers two distinct technical domains: biology/medicine (thin slices for microscopy) and mathematics (axis intercepts).

USAGE:
In biology and medicine (sense 1), 切片(せっぺん) refers specifically to prepared specimens. The process of making sections is called 切片(せっぺん)作製(さくせい). In mathematics (sense 2), 切片(せっぺん) usually appears with an axis label: y切片(せっぺん) or x切片(せっぺん).

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • 凍結(とうけつ)切片(せっぺん): frozen section
  • (うす)切片(せっぺん): thin section
  • 切片(せっぺん)染色(せんしょく)する: to stain a section
  • y切片(せっぺん): y-intercept
  • x切片(せっぺん): x-intercept

SIMILAR WORDS:

  • 断片(だんぺん): fragment — a piece broken off from something; not prepared or sliced intentionally
  • 断面(だんめん): cross-section — the surface revealed when something is cut through; focuses on the exposed surface rather than the slice itself
  • 標本(ひょうほん): specimen — a broader term for any sample prepared for study