ova

[ oh-vuh ]

/ ˈoʊ və /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ova ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

plural of ovum.

Content related to ova

These Food Names Aren’t What You Think They Are When you see mountain oysters on the menu, don’t expect a lovely plate of mollusks caught at the base of Black Mountain in San Francisco Bay.

Words related to ova

seed, egg, gamete, spore, oosphere

Words nearby ova

ouzel, ouzo, ouémé, ov language, ov-, ova, oval, oval amputation, oval foramen, oval fossa, oval kumquat

Definition for ova (2 of 2)

ovum

[ oh-vuh m ]

/ ˈoʊ vəm /

noun, plural o·va [oh-vuh] /ˈoʊ və/.

Cell Biology.

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

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

Origin of ovum

1700–10; < Latin ōvum egg¹; cognate with Greek ōión

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

Examples from the Web for ova

The yolk arises, in the manner described by Gegenbaur, in ova of about 0.06 mm.
The Works of Francis Maitland Balfour, Volume 1|Francis Maitland Balfour
The ova is of a delicate salmon colour and the cell-walls are semi-transparent—so much so that the embryo shows plainly through.
Poachers and Poaching|John Watson
The principal microscopic objects which are measured clinically are animal parasites and their ova and abnormal blood-corpuscles.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd
An ordinary charcoal filter will effectually prevent the passage of the ova, since their diameter is nearly 1/370 of an inch.
Parasites|T. Spencer Cobbold

Hering thinks that a direct infection by the ova is sufficient; but he gives no proof of the truth of this hypothesis.
Parasites|T. Spencer Cobbold

British Dictionary definitions for ova (1 of 2)

ova

/ (ˈəʊvə) /

noun

the plural of ovum

British Dictionary definitions for ova (2 of 2)

ovum

/ (ˈəʊvəm) /

noun plural ova (ˈəʊvə)

an unfertilized female gamete; egg cell

Word Origin for ovum

from Latin: egg

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 ova

ovum

[ ō′vəm ]

n. pl. o•va (ō′və)

The female reproductive cell or gamete; egg.

Science definitions for ova

ovum

[ ō′vəm ]

Plural ova

The mature reproductive cell of female animals, produced in the ovaries. See more at egg.

Culture definitions for ova

ova

[ (oh-vuh) ]

sing. ovum

The female sex cells, produced in the ovary and released during ovulation; the eggs. An ovum must normally be fertilized (see fertilization) to develop into a new living thing.