epiboly

American  

[ih-pib-uh-lee] / ɪˈpɪb ə li /

noun

Embryology.

plural

epibolies

1. the movement and spreading out of cells into sheets of tissue that overlie or surround other groups of cells, especially as in the formation of certain gastrulas.

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epiboly British  

/ ɪˈpɪbəlɪ, ˌɛpɪˈbɒlɪk /

noun

1. embryol a process that occurs during gastrulation in vertebrates, in which cells on one side of the blastula grow over and surround the remaining cells and yolk and eventually form the ectoderm

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Other Word Forms

• epibolic adjective

Etymology

Origin of epiboly

1870–75; < Greek epibolḗ a throwing on, equivalent to epi- epi- + bol- (variant stem of bállein to throw) + -ē noun suffix

Example Sentences

She had memorized a phrase: cleavage; epiboly, and organogenesis.

From Literature