oocyte

[ oh-uh-sahyt ]

nounCell Biology.
  1. an immature egg cell of the animal ovary; in humans, one oocyte matures during the menstrual cycle, becoming an ootid and then an ovum, while several others partially mature and then disintegrate.

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Origin of oocyte

1
First recorded in 1890–95; oo- + -cyte

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

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British Dictionary definitions for oocyte

oocyte

/ (ˈəʊəˌsaɪt) /


noun
  1. an immature female germ cell that gives rise to an ovum after two meiotic divisions

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 oocyte

oocyte

[ ōə-sīt′ ]


  1. A diploid cell that undergoes meiosis to form eggs.

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