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Gymnosperm

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gym⋅no⋅sperm

  [jim-nuh-spurm]
Use Gymnosperm in a Sentence
–noun Botany.
a vascular plant having seeds that are not enclosed in an ovary; a conifer or cycad.
Compare angiosperm.

Origin:
1820–30; < NL gymnospermae name of type. See gymno-, -sperm

Related forms:
gym⋅no⋅sperm⋅ism, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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gym·no·sperm   (jĭm'nə-spûrm')   
n.  A plant, such as a cycad or conifer, whose seeds are not enclosed within an ovary.

[From New Latin Gymnospermae, class name, from Greek gumnospermos : gumnos, naked; see nogw- in Indo-European roots + sperma, seed; see sperm1.]
gym'no·sper'mous adj., gym'no·sper'my n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

gymnosperm 
1830, from Fr. gymnosperme, lit. "naked seed" (i.e., not enclosed in an ovary), from Gk. gymnos "naked" + sperma "seed" (see sprout).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: gym·no·sperm
Pronunciation: 'jim-n&-"sp&rm
Function: noun
: any of a class or subdivision (Gymnospermae) of woody vascularseed plants (as conifers or cycads) that produce naked seeds not enclosed in an ovary and that in some instances have motile spermatozoids —compare ANGIOSPERM —gym·no·sper·mous /"jim-n&-'sp&r-m&s/ adjective
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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