apoembryony
|a-po-em-bry-o-ny|
🇺🇸
/ˌeɪ.poʊˈɛm.brɪ.ə.ni/
🇬🇧
/ˌeɪ.pəʊˈɛm.brɪ.ə.ni/
embryo formation without fertilization
Etymology
'apoembryony' originates from Greek components: 'apo-' meaning 'away from, apart' and 'embryon' meaning 'young (of an animal, a fetus)'; combined in botanical/Latin usage to denote embryos formed apart from fertilization.
'apoembryony' was formed in botanical Latin/technical botanical English from the Greek elements 'apo-' + 'embryon' and appears in specialized botanical literature from the 19th–20th century to describe adventitious or nucellar embryo formation.
Initially the components literally meant 'away from embryo' (or 'separate embryo'); the compound has come to mean specifically 'embryo formation apart from fertilization' in modern botanical usage.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the formation of embryos from tissues other than the fertilized egg (for example nucellar or integumentary tissue), i.e., embryo development without fertilization; a form of apomixis.
Apoembryony in some citrus species produces nucellar seedlings genetically identical to the mother plant.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/09/19 19:32