Get ready for the Humber Admissions Test with our comprehensive quiz. Study with flashcards and multiple-choice questions, each question offers hints and explanations to boost your confidence. Start your preparation now!

Each practice test/flash card set has 50 randomly selected questions from a bank of over 500. You'll get a new set of questions each time!

Practice this question and more.


Pinocytosis is best described as what process?

  1. Cell eating

  2. Cell drinking

  3. Cell respiration

  4. Cell growth

The correct answer is: Cell drinking

Pinocytosis is best described as the process of "cell drinking." This is a specific form of endocytosis, where the cell engulfs extracellular fluid along with its dissolved solutes. In this process, small vesicles are formed when the plasma membrane invaginates and internalizes the fluid, allowing the cell to take in nutrients and other essential substances that are dissolved in the fluid. In contrast, the other options represent different biological processes. "Cell eating" refers to phagocytosis, which is the process by which cells engulf larger particles or other cells. "Cell respiration" is a metabolic process involving the conversion of nutrients into energy, while "cell growth" pertains to the increase in size and mass of a cell. These definitions highlight that pinocytosis specifically involves the uptake of liquid, making "cell drinking" the most accurate description of the process.