epiboly

[ ih-pib-uh-lee ]

/ ɪˈpɪb ə li /

noun, plural e·pib·o·lies. Embryology.

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.

Nearby words

epibiotic, epiblast, epiblem, epiblepharon, epibolic, epiboly, epibulbar, epic, epic fail, epic hero, epic machinery

Origin of epiboly

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

Related forms

ep·i·bol·ic

[ep-uh-bol-ik] /ˌɛp əˈbɒl ɪk/, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for epiboly

epiboly

/ (ɪˈpɪbəlɪ) /

noun plural -lies

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

Derived Forms

epibolic (ˌɛpɪˈbɒlɪk), adjective

Word Origin for epiboly

C19: from Greek epibolē a laying on, from epiballein to throw on, from epi- + ballein to throw

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medicine definitions for epiboly

epiboly

[ ĭ-pĭb′ə-lē ]

n.

The growth of a rapidly dividing group of cells around a more slowly dividing group of cells, as in the formation of a gastrula.