A prefix meaning '
a few', and used for compounds with a number of repeating units intermediate between those
in monomers and those in high polymers. The limits are not precisely defined, and
in practice vary with the type of structure being considered, but are generally from
3 to 10, e.g.
oligopeptides,
oligosaccharides.
Source:
PAC, 1995, 67, 1307
(Glossary of class names of organic compounds and reactivity intermediates based on
structure (IUPAC Recommendations 1995))
on page 1353