embryonic
Americanadjective
-
pertaining to or in the state of an embryo.
-
rudimentary; undeveloped.
- Synonyms:
- unfinished, immature, underdeveloped
adjective
-
of or relating to an embryo
-
in an early stage; rudimentary; undeveloped
Other Word Forms
- embryonically adverb
- nonembryonal adjective
- nonembryonic adjective
- nonembryonically adverb
- pseudoembryonic adjective
- unembryonal adjective
- unembryonic adjective
Etymology
Origin of embryonic
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The researchers propose that this mechanism provides an effective solution for very large embryonic cells that divide rapidly and cannot rely on the conventional model.
From Science Daily • Feb. 28, 2026
“We believe as a business that embryonic selection, genetic optimization, is not for the few, but for everyone,” Sadeghi said at the June launch of Nucleus’s polygenic embryo screening product.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 9, 2025
They rarely work with finished products; instead, they nurture embryonic ideas.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 27, 2025
There are real concerns with IVF in America, even for those who do not belong to the movement for embryonic personhood.
From Slate • Oct. 7, 2025
By 2006, people in the United States were sending around 12.5 billion texts a month, which sounds like a lot, but the technology really was embryonic.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
