gemmule

[ jem-yool ]

noun
  1. Botany. gemma (def. 2).

  2. Zoology. an asexually produced mass of cells that is capable of developing into an animal, as a freshwater sponge.

  1. Evolution. one of the hypothetical living units conceived by Darwin in the theory of pangenesis as the bearers of the hereditary attributes.

Origin of gemmule

1
1835–45; <French <Latin gemmula.See gemma, -ule

Words Nearby gemmule

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use gemmule in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for gemmule

gemmule

/ (ˈdʒɛmjuːl) /


noun
  1. zoology a cell or mass of cells produced asexually by sponges and developing into a new individual; bud

  2. botany a small gemma

  1. a small hereditary particle postulated by Darwin in his theory of pangenesis

Origin of gemmule

1
C19: from French, from Latin gemmula a little bud; see gem

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for gemmule

gemmule

[ jĕmyōōl ]


  1. A small gemma or similar structure, especially a reproductive structure in some sponges that remains dormant through the winter and later develops into a new individual.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.