Ovulate
/ˈɒv.jʊ.leɪt/noun
To produce or release an ovum, or to form egg cells in the ovary.
Did you know?Ovulate ultimately comes from Latin ovulum, a diminutive of ovum, meaning “egg,” the same ancient root that gave English its everyday word egg through a different historical path.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₂ōwyóm
“egg”
Latin
Latin
ovum
“egg”
Latin
Latin
ovulum
“little egg”
Late Latin
Latin
ovulāre
“to form eggs, to produce eggs”
Modern English
English
ovulate
“to release an ovum or produce egg cells”