Ovum
/ˈoʊ.vəm/noun
A female reproductive cell or egg.
Did you know?Latin *ovum* comes from a deep Indo-European root meaning “egg,” and it survived into modern science as the name for the cell that begins animal life.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₂ōwyóm
“egg”
Latin
Latin
ovum
“egg”
Late Latin
Latin
ovārius
“of eggs; egg-bearing”
Old French
Old French
oef / oef
“egg”
Modern English
English
ovum
“a female reproductive cell; egg”