OVUM (ova)

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

Irregular inflected form: ova   

 Dictionary entry overview: What does ovum mean? 

• OVUM (noun)
  The noun OVUM has 1 sense:

1. the female reproductive cell; the female gamete

  Familiarity information: OVUM used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• OVUM (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The female reproductive cell; the female gamete

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Synonyms:

egg cell; ovum

Hypernyms ("ovum" is a kind of...):

gamete (a mature sexual reproductive cell having a single set of unpaired chromosomes)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "ovum"):

egg (animal reproductive body consisting of an ovum or embryo together with nutritive and protective envelopes; especially the thin-shelled reproductive body laid by e.g. female birds)

ootid (mature ovum after penetration by sperm but before the formation of a zygote)

ovule (a small or immature ovum)

Holonyms ("ovum" is a part of...):

female reproductive system (the reproductive system of females)

Derivation:

ovulate (produce and discharge eggs)

 Context examples 

The development of ovum, which are the female germ cells.

(Oogenesis, NCI Thesaurus)

Any of the fluid-filled vesicles in the mammalian ovary containing a maturing ovum.

(Graafian Follicle, NCI Thesaurus)

The state or condition of having a developing embryo or fetus in the body (outside the uterus), after union of an ovum and spermatozoon, during the period from conception to birth.

(Ectopic Pregnancy, Food and Drug Administration)

The determination of the amount of ova and parasites present in a sample.

(Ova and Parasite Measurement, NCI Thesaurus)

A measurement of the parasites and ova in a biological specimen.

(Ova and Parasite Measurement, NCI Thesaurus/CDISC)

One of a pair of female reproductive glands in which the ova, or eggs, are formed.

(Ovary, NCI Dictionary)

Having to do with the ovaries, the female reproductive glands in which the ova (eggs) are formed.

(Ovarian, NCI Dictionary)

Fertilization of an ovum by a spermatozoon resulting in formation of a viable zygote.

(Conception, NCI Thesaurus)

Either of the two offspring resulting from a shared ovum.

(Identical Twin, NCI Thesaurus)

One of the agents used to treat the ova was messenger RNA from the human Kdm4d gene.

(Healthy cloned monkeys born in Shanghai, Wikinews)