ovum

American  

[oh-vuhm] / ˈoʊ vəm /

noun

plural

ova

1. Cell Biology.

   1. the female reproductive cell or gamete of animals, which is capable of developing, usually only after fertilization, into a new individual.

   2. the female reproductive cell or gamete of plants.

2. Architecture. an oval ornament, as in an egg-and-dart molding.

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ovum British  

/ ˈəʊvəm /

noun

1. an unfertilized female gamete; egg cell

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Etymology

Origin of ovum

First recorded in 1700–10; from Latin ōvum egg ¹; cognate with Greek ōión

Compare meaning

How does ovum compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• oocyte vs. ovum

Example Sentences

Globally, 287 million people listened to at least one podcast a month in 2016, a figure that is expected to grow to 1.85 billion by 2023, according to the research company Ovum.

From The Guardian • Jul. 22, 2019

"Vendors usually come from a crowdfunding background typically with very similar product functionality," says Rishi Kaul, a research analyst for consultancy Ovum.

From BBC • Mar. 1, 2018

A study by the IT consultancy firm Ovum predicts that by 2019, mobile data, the same kind that ensnared Pliskin, will account for more than half of all global roaming revenue.

From Washington Post • Dec. 15, 2016

She used the money to make a trailer for the film that would become Ovum.

From Slate • Nov. 4, 2015

The one from which my pictures were taken has the title Mala Gallina, malum Ovum, and was published at Vienna and Nuremburg.

From Notes and Queries, Number 192, July 2, 1853 A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc by Various