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microspore

[ mahy-kruh-spawr, ‐spohr ]
/ ˈmaɪ krəˌspɔr, ‐ˌspoʊr /

noun Botany.

the smaller of the two kinds of spores characteristically produced by seed plants and some fern allies, developing into a male gametophyte.Compare megaspore,
a pollen grain.

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Origin of microspore

First recorded in 1855–60; micro- + -spore

OTHER WORDS FROM microspore

mi·cro·spor·ic [mahy-kruh-spawr-ik, ‐spor‐], /ˌmaɪ krəˈspɔr ɪk, ‐ˈspɒr‐/, mi·cro·spor·ous [mahy-kruh-spawr-uhs, ‐spohr‐, mahy-kros-per-uhs], /maɪ krəˈspɔr əs, ‐ˈspoʊr‐, maɪˈkrɒs pər əs/, adjective

Words nearby microspore

microspectroscope, microspherocytosis, microsphygmy, microsplenia, microsporangium, microspore, microsporocyte, microsporogenesis, microsporophyll, Microsporum, microstat
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for microspore

British Dictionary definitions for microspore

microspore
/ (ˈmaɪkrəʊˌspɔː) /

noun

the smaller of two types of spore produced by some spore-bearing plants, which develops into the male gametophyteCompare megaspore (def. 1)
the pollen grain of seed plants

Derived forms of microspore

microsporic or microsporous, adjective
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

Scientific definitions for microspore

microspore
[ mīk′rə-spôr′ ]

One of the two types of haploid spores produced by a heterosporous plant. Microspores develop into male gametophytes and are usually smaller than megaspores. In angiosperms, the microspore develops into the pollen grain.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.