spore
UK /spɔː(ɹ)/ · US /spoɹ/ noun, verb, proper noun
Forms spores sporing spored
- noun A reproductive particle, usually a single cell, released by a fungus, alga, or plant that may germinate into another.
- noun A thick resistant particle produced by a bacterium or protist to survive in harsh or unfavorable conditions.
- verb To produce spores.
- proper noun A surname.
Etymology
From New Latin spora, from Ancient Greek σπορά (sporá, “seed”), related to σπόρος (spóros, “sowing”) and σπείρω (speírō, “to sow”). Related to English spread).
Webster’s 1913
- noun (a) One of the minute grains in flowerless plants, which are analogous to seeds, as serving to reproduce the species.
- noun (a) A minute grain or germ; a small, round or ovoid body, formed in certain organisms, and by germination giving rise to a new organism; as, the reproductive spores of bacteria, etc. (b) One of the parts formed by fission in certain Protozoa. See Spore formation, belw. Spore formation. (a) (Biol) A mode of reproduction resembling multitude fission, common among Protozoa, in which the organism breaks up into a number of pieces, or spores, each of which eventually develops into an organism like the parent form. Balfour.
Etymology [Gr. Sperm.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “spore”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details