primordium

[prahy-mawr-dee-uh m]

See more synonyms for primordium on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural pri·mor·di·a

[prahy-mawr-dee-uh] /praɪˈmɔr di ə/. Embryology.

the first recognizable, histologically differentiated stage in the development of an organ.

Origin of primordium

1665–75; < Latin prīmōrdium, in plural: beginnings, elementary stage, equivalent to prīm(us) first (see prime) + ōrd(īrī) to begin + -ium -ium; cf. exordium

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for primordia

commencement, origin, start, birth, dawning, primordium

Examples from the Web for primordia

Historical Examples of primordia

It does not therefore follow, because these primordia semina rerum are not discoverable, that therefore they may not exist.
An Introduction to Entomology: Vol. III (of 4)
William Kirby
No wonder that at a time of such turbulence fine society also should have shown the primordia of a great change.
The Works of Max Beerbohm
Max Beerbohm

British Dictionary definitions for primordia

primordium

noun plural -dia (-dɪə)

biology an organ or part in the earliest stage of development

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

primordia in Medicine

primordium

[prī-môr′dē-əm]

n. pl. pri•mor•di•a (-dē-ə)

An aggregation of cells in the embryo indicating the first trace of an organ or structure.