ovum, egg cell
(noun) the female reproductive cell; the female gamete
Source: WordNet® 3.1
ovum (plural ova)
(cytology) The female gamete in animals; the egg cell.
• megagamete
• gamete
• spermatozoon
Source: Wiktionary
O"vum, n.; pl. L. Ova, E. Ovums. Etym: [L., an egg. See Oval.]
1. (Biol.)
Definition: A more or less spherical and transparent mass of granular protoplasm, which by a process of multiplication and growth develops into a mass of cells, constituting a new individual like the parent; an egg, spore, germ, or germ cell. See Illust. of Mycropyle.
Note: The ovum is a typical cell, with a cell wall, cell substance, nucleus, and nucleolus. In man and the higher animals the cell wall, a vertically striated membrane, is called the zona pellucida; the cell contents, the vitellus; the nucleus, the germinal vesicle; and the nucleolus, the germinal spot. The diameter of the ripe ovum in man and the domestic animals varies between 1-200 and 1-120 of an inch.
2. (Arch.)
Definition: One of the series of egg-shaped ornaments into which the ovolo is often carved. Gwilt.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
22 November 2024
(noun) (nautical) a line (rope or chain) that regulates the angle at which a sail is set in relation to the wind
The word “coffee” entered the English language in 1582 via the Dutch “koffie,” borrowed from the Ottoman Turkish “kahve,” borrowed in turn from the Arabic “qahwah.” The Arabic word qahwah was traditionally held to refer to a type of wine.
