[ahr-ki-goh-nee-uh
m] 
[-nee-uh] . Botany. | the female reproductive organ in ferns, mosses, etc. |
| ar·che·go·ni·um (är'kĭ-gō'nē-əm) n. pl. ar·che·go·ni·a (-nē-ə) A multicellular, often flask-shaped, egg-producing organ occurring in mosses, ferns, and most gymnosperms. [New Latin, from Greek arkhegonos, original : arkhe-, arkhi-, archi- + gonos, offspring; see genə- in Indo-European roots.] ar'che·go'ni·al adj., ar'che·go'ni·ate (-ĭt) adj. |
| archegonium (är'kĭ-gō'nē-əm) Pronunciation Key
Plural archegonia The egg-producing organ occurring in bryophytes (such as mosses and liverworts), ferns, and most gymnosperms. The archegonium is a multicellular, often flask-shaped structure that contains a single egg. Compare antheridium. |
archegonium
the female reproductive organ in ferns and mosses. An archegonium also occurs in some gymnosperms, e.g., cycads and conifers. A flask-shaped structure, it consists of a neck, with one or more layers of cells, and a swollen base-the venter-which contains the egg. Neck-canal cells, located above the egg, disappear as the archegonium matures, thus producing a passage for entry of the sperm. The sperm are produced in the corresponding male reproductive organ, the antheridium.
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