gonidium

[ goh-nid-ee-uhm ]

noun,plural go·nid·i·a [goh-nid-ee-uh]. /goʊˈnɪd i ə/.
  1. (in algae) any one-celled asexual reproductive body, as a tetraspore or zoospore.

  2. an algal cell, or a filament of an alga, growing within the thallus of a lichen.

Origin of gonidium

1
1835–45; <New Latin, equivalent to gon-gon- + -idium noun suffix

Other words from gonidium

  • go·nid·i·al, go·nid·ic, adjective
  • go·nid·i·oid, adjective
  • in·ter·go·nid·i·al, adjective

Words Nearby gonidium

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How to use gonidium in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for gonidium

gonidium

/ (ɡəˈnɪdɪəm) /


nounplural -ia (-ɪə)
  1. a green algal cell in the thallus of a lichen

  2. an asexual reproductive cell in some colonial algae

Origin of gonidium

1
C19: from New Latin, diminutive from gono-

Derived forms of gonidium

  • gonidial or gonidic, adjective

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 gonidium

gonidium

[ gō-nĭdē-əm ]


Plural gonidia
  1. An asexual reproductive cell found in certain algae that form colonies. Gonidia undergo repeated mitoses to form new colonies, which then hatch out of the parent colonies.

  2. A chlorophyll-bearing, photosynthetic algal cell housed in the thallus of a lichen.

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