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ovum

 - 6 dictionary results

o⋅vum

  [oh-vuhm]
Use ovum in a Sentence
–noun, plural o⋅va  [oh-vuh] .
1. Cell Biology.
a. the female reproductive cell or gamete of animals, which is capable of developing, usually only after fertilization, into a new individual.
b. the female reproductive cell or gamete of plants.
2. Architecture. an oval ornament, as in an egg-and-dart molding.
Origin:
1700–10; < L ōvum egg 1 ; c. Gk ōión
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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o·vum   (ō'vəm)   
n.   pl. o·va (ō'və)
The female reproductive cell or gamete of animals; egg.

[Latin ōvum, egg; see awi- in Indo-European roots.]
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

ovum 
(pl. ova), 1706, from L. ovum "egg," cognate with Gk. oon, O.N. egg, O.E. æg, all from PIE base *owyo-/*oyyo- "egg" (see egg).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: ovum
Pronunciation: 'O-v&m
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural ova /-v&/
: a female gamete : MACROGAMETE; especially : a mature egg that has undergone reduction, is ready for fertilization, and takes theform of a relatively large inactive gamete providing a comparatively great amount of reserve material and contributing most of the cytoplasm of the zygote
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

ovum o·vum (ō'vəm)
n. pl. o·va (ō'və)
The female reproductive cell or gamete; egg.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Encyclopedia

ovum

in human physiology, single cell released from either of the female reproductive organs, the ovaries, which is capable of developing into a new organism when fertilized (united) with a sperm cell

Learn more about ovum with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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