spermatheca
noun
a small sac or cavity in female or hermaphroditic invertebrates used to store sperm for fertilizing eggs, as in the queen bee.
spermathecae
-
pluralof spermatheca.plural
The grammatical form denoting more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
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.
Or maybe they reach into the female’s secondary sperm-storage side-sacs, the spermathecae, to remove sperm, though they seem poorly located and insufficiently grabby for the task.
From New York Times β Oct. 17, 2011
These sacs are dealt with later under the description of the spermathecae, which function they appear to perform.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 7 "Cerargyrite" to "Charing Cross" by Various
In many Geoscolicidae, however, and certain Lumbricidae and Perichaetidae, there are several, even a large number, of pairs of very small spermathecae to each of the segments which contain them.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 7 "Cerargyrite" to "Charing Cross" by Various
The large sacs which have been termed vagina are suggestive of the large coelomic spermathecae in Eudrilids, a comparison which needs, however, embryological data, not at present forthcoming, for its justification.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 7 "Cerargyrite" to "Charing Cross" by Various
The spermathecae are usually paired structures, one pair to each of the segments where they occur.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 7 "Cerargyrite" to "Charing Cross" by Various
