ovary
Americannoun
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ovaries
plural
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Anatomy, Zoology. the female gonad or reproductive gland, in which the ova and the hormones that regulate female secondary sex characteristics develop.
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Botany. the enlarged lower part of the pistil in angiospermous plants, enclosing the ovules or young seeds.
noun
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either of the two female reproductive organs, which produce ova and secrete oestrogen hormones
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the corresponding organ in vertebrate and invertebrate animals
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botany the hollow basal region of a carpel containing one or more ovules. In some plants the carpels are united to form a single compound ovary
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The reproductive organ in female animals that produces eggs and the sex hormones estrogen and progesterone. In most vertebrate animals, the ovaries occur in pairs. In mammals, the ovaries contain numerous follicles, which house the developing eggs (oocytes).
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See more at menstrual cycle ovulation
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The part of a carpel or of a gynoecium made of fused carpels that contains the ovules in a flower. The ovary is located at the base of the carpel and ripens into a fruit after fertilization of one or more of the ovules.
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See more at flower
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of ovary
First recorded in 1650–60; from New Latin ōvārium; see ovum, -ary
Vocabulary lists containing ovary
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Small cell neuroendocrine cancers can develop in the lung, prostate, and ovary.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 4, 2026
Chanel Robinson achieved exactly what the gold rush of blockbuster weight-loss drugs promised: She lost nearly 100 pounds, lowered her cholesterol to normal levels and reined in her polycystic ovary syndrome.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 17, 2026
Some of the approaches used in RRM — such as fertility awareness, endometriosis excision, or management of polycystic ovary syndrome — can improve fertility for some patients.
From Salon ● Apr. 28, 2026
She also had an enlarged ovary and visible oviduct — an avian fallopian tube — suggesting she was getting ready for breeding, which typically happens in January or February.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 26, 2025
So the dispute between Reinier de Graaf and Jan Swammerdam over the discovery of the egg within the ovary, which began in 1672, was referred to the Royal Society in London for adjudication.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
This study instead followed where chemicals ended up throughout the colony and examined their effects on the queen, her ovaries, her eggs, and the wax.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 22, 2026
Mumps can cause deafness and inflame the brain, pancreas, testicles, ovaries and breast tissue.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
The process - which can cost more than $10,000 and is rarely covered by insurance - involves doctors harvesting eggs from the ovaries and freezing them for a future pregnancy.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Egg freezing involves stimulating the ovaries with hormone injections before mature eggs are surgically retrieved and preserved for possible future use through in vitro fertilization.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
Tumors the size of baseballs had nearly replaced her kidneys, bladder, ovaries, and uterus.
From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
